Reality
by Chocolate13
Summary: What if Edward and the Cullens were real? Kiera, a normal, modern, Twilight fangirl, is both frightened and excited when the famous vampire shows up. What happens then when she gets caught up in a struggle between her dreams and her worst nightmares?
1. A First Glimpse

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Twilight or New Moon.

A/N: This is my first fan fiction, so all reviews are welcome. I would love to get feedback so I can make my stories better. Thanks for reading!

_I love Edward Cullen!!!_

These words, written in sparkly pink pen, adorned with hearts, stars, and smiley faces, covered my English binder. I squeezed it in again on the back cover, half listening to what the teacher was saying.

Next to me, Ivy was doodling on her planner, similarly not paying much attention. A tall, handsome man appeared under her talented pen. I leaned over and drew a heart next to it. We exchanged a grin, stifled a giggle, and then started to listen.

As usual, the lecture wasn't very interesting, and my thoughts soon turned to more important topics, such as the meeting following this period.

When Mrs. Dellir dismissed us, Ivy and I walked out into the hallway to find Lacie waiting for us. Looking exactly as I've always pictured Bella, Lacie was a very good friend of mine. To tell the truth, the only reason I talked to her in the first place was because of the remarkable resemblance she had to Edward's girlfriend. Of course, after getting to know her, we became friends because of her disposition and kindness. I love Lacie, and I know she feels the same, although she does sometimes find Ivy and my chatter a bit tedious. The poor thing only has a few classes with us, so we always make the best of lunch.

"Hey, guys," she said, grinning, "what do you do in English?"

I looked toward Ivy, hoping she would remember some of Mrs. Dellir's lecture. Of course, I would expect no less.

"She talks about the significance of golden threads in _A Tale of Two Cities. _How was the science test?"

"Not too bad, actually. It definitely could be worse. If you studied, you should be fine. How long did you work on it last night?"

"Two hours."

"I thought it would be something like that," Lacie said, rolling her eyes.

Ivy was known of as being the smartest girl in the grade, and the title was not given without reason. She was incredibly good at school. From her 96 overall average to her 5 effort grade, she was all the teachers' favorite. I met her when I caught her reading _Twilight _last year. Instantly grateful that there was someone in the school that had potential to share my obsession, I lent her _New Moon _and when she was finished, started talking about it together.

After getting some food, we walked over to the far corner of the cafeteria and sat down at our favorite table.

"Alright everyone," Ivy started, "Welcome to our twenty-second daily _Twilight _club meeting. Are there any new members?"

I glanced around the table. Nope, none, as usual. We had tried to get the word around about the club, but no one had been interested. I doubt that Ivy and I are the only ones who have ever read it though, that would be impossible. I think it's just that most people don't want to be seen hanging out with us and doing something as dorky as having a fan club for a book.

"Before we begin," Ivy continued, "I would like to know if there have been any changing of minds?"

She looked pointedly at Lacie, who merely grinned and turned away. She wasn't a fan of the books, despite how much she looked like Bella. She had started to read the first one, but just hadn't been able to keep going. It was a tribute to her character that she attended the meetings, nevertheless. And although her friends continued to nag her, they respected her decision to remain the lone buffalo.

Ivy, the chairman of the club, jumped right into the main discussion.

"Our topic for today is Alice's hair. Why black? Does it fit her character?"

I was walking outside with Lacie after school when I realized she wasn't looking too good.

"Are you feeling ok?" I asked worriedly

She gave me a look that clearly said that I should know better than to be asking. Lacie was never sick, and it took a lot to hurt her feelings.

"Then what's wrong?"

Lacie paused, as if planning out what she would say, "It's just, I don't get why you spend so much time talking and thinking about stuff that's not true. And sometimes you even pretend that it's real. I mean, a bit is ok, but isn't it kind of a waste of time?" She said it hesitantly, as if trying not to hurt me. Her thoughts were reasonable and I could see how much care she was giving to say them nicely, so I wasn't mad at all. I understood her point of view completely.

"It's fun Lacie. It's just, the world of fantasy, you know, in _Twilight, _is so much more exciting than real life. There are vampires and werewolves, love and danger, it's all there. I would do anything to live in a world like that, so I pretend. The more I discuss it and think about it, the more real it seems and it makes my life a tiny bit better. Inside I know that it's not real, but…" I trailed off, thinking.

Lacie had been expecting a but, she knew I wouldn't end in saying that Edward didn't really exist. She waited, and finally I continued.

"But it _could _be real you know. There's no proof that that vampires _don't _exist. Is there?"

"True, but there is no proof that they _do _exist either." Lacie countered.

"There doesn't need to be, as long as there's a chance they _could _be real. Does that make sense?"

Lacie shrugged, "Sure, I guess. Is it ok if I still don't believe in vampires, though?"

I laughed "That's fine!"

We hugged and I ran off to my brother's car. He had been honking the horn at me for the last minute, which I had knowingly and happily ignored. He had gotten his drivers license a month ago, which he used mostly to drive to school and back every day.

He was looking very angry at the moment, probably upset at me wasting his time talking to Lacie. It wasn't as if he had anything better to do at home. Play video games or video chat with his friends. Boys were so boring like that, especially Dylan.

"Hey," I said cheerfully, jumping into the back seat.

"Hey," he grumbled.

"Got a lot of homework tonight?"

"No,"

"What are you going to do, then?" I had to ask.

"Play station,"

I giggled and he glared at me out of the corner of his eye. He knew me well enough to be sure of what the subject of my laughing was.

We drove along in silence, both of our minds on different things. Mine on Edward, as usual, and Dylan's on video games, no doubt.

Maybe it was because I was so preoccupied with _Twilight _at the moment, or maybe because I just happened to be paying attention to what was right in front of me for a change, but I saw a silver Volvo drive across the road while we were stopped at a light.

"Dylan!" I screamed

Alarmed, he looked at me concernedly. "What's wrong?"

"Turn right!"

"Home's straight Kiera, in case you haven't noticed once in the last ten years."

"No, I think I saw…" I stopped, knowing how crazy this was going to sound.

"Seeing things, now are we?"

"No, well, yes!" Flustered, I tried to arrange my thoughts. I had less than a minute to convince him to go after the Volvo, before he went straight. "Just turn right!"

"Can't you tell me why?'

"No, just do it!"

The light turned green, and with a sigh, Dylan turned the car right. Squinting, I could just make out the Volvo way ahead of us, but still visible, and still able to be followed.


	2. Curiosity

Disclaimer: Although it is one of my biggest wishes, I do not own the rights to either _Twilight _or _New Moon. _

A/N Chapter 2 up! Thanks for all the reviews and support I've gotten. Now that the second installment is done, I'm sure I'll be able to keep going and finish the whole story.

The Volvo was fast, no arguing that, but Dylan was no slow poke. As old as his car was, it hadn't lost its speed throughout the years. Dylan also had the advantage of knowing the roads being that he had driven them for so many years. He knew every curve and bump by heart, while the driver of the Volvo probably did not. Even so, the silver car remained ahead, although never quite out of sight.

Despite his reluctance at first, Dylan was enjoying himself. This was clearly reminding him very much of a video game. He was completely focused and in no mood to talk, which was all right by me.

We drove for about five minutes, but I could see that an idea of turning back was already starting to form in Dylan's mind. The car abruptly turned off the road and into a driveway. We pulled up next to where it had turned off and I peered out the window. I couldn't see much due to the fact that the driveway curved almost directly after it began.

"Come on, Dylan, what are we waiting for?" I asked impatiently, bouncing in my seat.

He gave me his you-should-know-better look, disgusted that I would ask such a question.

"Honestly, Kiera, I'm not going on someone else's property."

"Isn't that what teenage boys always do?"

"Yes, but not when their younger sister is with them and liable to be a pest." He laughed and I scowled.

Seeing a need for more explanation, he continued, "Anyways, I can't see what's behind that curve."

"Awww, Dylan, come on. What could possibly be behind there that would be so scary? A dragon?" then I muttered too softly for him to hear "Or a vampire?"

Dylan backed up unto the road and began to turn around.

"Answer's no, sis," He said before I had time to complain.

Resigned to the fact that the only way I was going to get back to the driveway was by my own means, I leaned back in my chair and contemplated the afternoon's events.

Could it really be _him_? I hardly dared think his beautiful name. He couldn't really be here in Colorado, so far away from Forks. These memories sparked the words Lacie had spoken to me just a short time ago.

"_It's just, I don't get why you spend so much time talking and thinking about stuff that's not true."_

Was my imagination just running away with me again? Was I so desperate to think that vampires existed that I jumped on and grabbed hold of a tiny, crazy connection between real life and _Twilight_? Was I really that pathetic?

But then I remembered the silver Volvo, driving perfectly straight down the middle of the lane. No, it was just too much of a coincidence. Something was up.

That night, after I finished my homework, I sat upstairs looking out my window. All that I could think about was that silver Volvo and the mysterious curved driveway. No doubt that one of the reasons that I wanted to return so much was because I had been denied access to it earlier. The other reason was curiosity of an extreme type.

After sitting for a while, I found that I could not deny myself any longer. Yelling excuses out to my parents, I raced down stairs and towards the front door.

I passed Dylan in the hallway, and he gave me a look that showed clearly that he knew exactly where I was off to and that he strongly disapproved. Before he could say anything though, I was out the door and on my bike.

The night was cloudy, but the streetlights gave off enough light to see by. It was cool enough to make me shiver, but not cold enough for me to regret not bringing a jacket.

The ride definitely took longer, but it was infinitely more enjoyable than the car. Before I quite realized where I was, I had arrived at the driveway. There I stopped, a bit nervous about continuing.

Squinting, I saw some lights on the other side of the trees. All uncertainty disappearing, being replaced with excitement, I turned off the road an onto the narrow dirt driveway. After the first curve, a few more followed, bringing me back around so that I was on the other side of the trees I had seen from the road.

A magnificent house stood there, pure white with three stories stacked neatly on top of each other. Each of the many windows issued a lively light, joyful and bright.

I distinctly heard a voice coming from the house. It was singing and being accompanied by a piano. It was a merry tune, and the voice was by far the best I'd ever heard.

Transfixed, I lay my bicycle down on the grass and walked up to one of the windows. I looked in to see a small room taken up mostly by a large Steinway piano. A women, facing away from me, was standing on next to it, singing. Her hair came down a little farther than her shoulders and she stood with the excellent posture and with an air of dignity. Despite this, she seemed relaxed and graceful. The player of the piano was blocked from sight by the raised top.

Never had I heard such wondrous music.

I was carried away to a beautiful sunny meadow, flowers blooming all around. Next to me stood a tall, teenage boy, skin sparkling in the sun. His eyes were a soft topaz and he gazed down at me lovingly.

"Kiera," He said, his voice thick with admiration.

"Edward," I said dreamily.

We sank to the ground and I leaned my head against his perfect chest. He rested his on mine, so that his copper locks mixed my dark blond ones.

"I'll always love you, my dear" he whispered into my ear.

"Always?"

"Always."

"You promise?"

He took my face in his hands and looked deep into my eyes.

"I promise,"

Slowly, he brought my face closer and closer to his. Excitement rippled through my body. Our lips were centimeters apart, and they moved closer and closer. So close…

The music stopped suddenly, and I was thrown out of my dream so quickly that it took me a moment to remember where I was.

Extremely disappointed, I glanced into the window again. The girl was still facing away, but by the way her head moved, it looked as if she was talking with the piano player. Their quiet conversation, however, was too soft to reach my ears.

As I watched, she suddenly stiffened and started to turn towards the window which I was peering in through.

Faster than I thought was possible, I sprang from my kneeling position and ran around the corner of the house, hoping to find some safety there.

I leaned against the house, breathing heavily though I had only gone a short distance.

The night pressed down upon me, and I shivered once again. It was completely dark now, as there were no windows on this side of the house. I couldn't see a thing. Now that the music was gone, everything seemed abnormally still and silent, as if the whole world was waiting.

Suddenly I heard the crackling of footsteps in the leaves behind me, and the slow and quiet breathing of a tracker.

I took off in the other direction, desperately trying to outrun whoever was coming.

Normally not a klutz, it was just my luck for this night to be a rare time that I trip and fall. What a fall it was too, right on my face. Before I could scramble to my feet, I felt an icy cold hand fasten around my wrist, and what felt like an electric shock run up my arm. I could tell it was a strong hold, but I was too scared to move anyway.

Just like a horror movie, a voice full of anger and menace sounded right next to my ear.

"What are you doing here and why the hell were you spying on us?"

A/N All reviews are welcome, constructive criticism and compliments adored. Due to the fact that I will be going on vacation to a place that probably won't have internet connection, I doubt I'll be able to update for about two weeks. Sorry!


	3. Acquaintanceship

Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own the rights to _Twilight _or _New Moon_, so all the characters from them belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N So it turns out I do have Internet connection! (I'm on vacation and didn't expect to be able to post anything for a few weeks) Hope you enjoy chapter 3!

I was way too scared to move, and even less able to talk. My heart was beating hard as I searched the darkness for a face. It was in vain however, for the night was pitch black. My silence was apparently not pleasing the figure that still had a painfully hard hold on my arm.

"Why are you here?" it growled.

I flinched as I realized how close the person must be to me. From the deepness of it, I assumed it was male.

A lump formed in my throat, and I was still unable to utter a word. I remembered why I had come here in the first place. How I had seen the Volvo and stupidly connected them to the Cullens. On the other hand, how stupid was it really? A picture of Edward's perfect face drifted into the front of my mind. It calmed me down, so I kept it there.

Suddenly, the hand on my arm vanished and I heard the person quickly moving away from me.

"Who are you?" he growled, farther away this time. It still had all of its former menace, but it now contained something that resembled apprehension.

Due to the fact that we were no longer at such close quarters, I was finally able to talk.

"K-Kiera. Kiera Daze."

This answer did not satisfy the person in front of me. He spoke again, though did not move any closer.

"Sorry, wrong question. I meant, what are you?"

The question was spoken in such a fierce a growl as to render me speechless for another few moments. It also really confused me.

"I'm a girl," I said hesitantly and skeptically, not sure if it was the right answer.

"I figured that," He laughed, though without much enthusiasm. It was clear he was not really amused. His voice turned deadly serious again. "So, you're not…one of us?"

This confused me even more, but I decided that I wasn't one of "us" whoever they were.

"No," I said, a little more confidently.

"Then how do you know me?"

Of all the questions so far, this twisted my mind the most. I didn't know him; I doubt I had ever met him in my life. What was he talking about?

"I don't know you," I said, hoping that a contradiction wouldn't make him angrier.

"Yes you do."

"No I don't! I think I would know if I did!"

I could feel his glare, even if I couldn't see his eyes. I could sense him circling me, but still not moving any closer. Shivers ran up my spine as I suddenly realized how vulnerable I was.

"Look," I said desperately "I've never met you before, I've never even heard your voice. I don't see how I could know you."

"Then how come…" He trailed off.

There was a deep silence, where even the crickets were still. I was dying to know what he wanted to say, but I was way too frightened to prompt him.

He must have turned on a flashlight, for my captor's face was suddenly lit up.

My heart skipped a couple of beats and I stopped breathing for a second.

It was Edward.

His face was oddly colored, due to the way he held the flashlight under his chin, but his features were still as beautiful as I always imagined them. His mouth formed a perfectly straight line, showing no emotion. Some of his copper hair had drifted down to cover his eyes. With a slight flip of his head, the locks moved aside, and the full power of his eyes hit me.

They were as black as the night.

"Now do you know who I am?" He whispered, just loud enough for me to hear.

"Ed-edward?" I stuttered, hardly daring to believe it.

Snarling, the man of my dreams turned away, clearly agitated.

"Let's repeat the question, how do you know me?"

I knew my answer was going to sound foolish, but I couldn't lie, not to Edward.

"I read about you in a book."

"Darn Jasper!" He shouted into the night.

Scared, I tried to back up, only to find my self up against a tree trunk.

He turned to back to me, but this time his face was softer.

"My apologies, I'm just a bit, well, _furious _right now."

I couldn't tell if it was Jasper or me he was angrier at, so I didn't say anything as he approached me again.

"Why are you here?"

It was getting easier to talk now.

"I saw your car, and I followed it. I wanted to see if you were…_real._"

Edward rolled his eyes and smiled a bit, but once again the rest of his face showed no amusement.

"Have you found out all that you wanted?"

"Not by a long shot," I answered, making sure he was aware I wasn't going away anytime soon.

He dropped down to his knees, so we were at the same level once again. He turned the flashlight off, causing the night to drop upon us again.

"You clearly want some questions answered, and so do I. Meet me at the Way Diner at seven o'clock tomorrow evening. Don't be late."

In a second, he was gone.

As if in a trance, I got up, found my bike, and started the ride home. My mind was utterly blank, I couldn't think at all.

It wasn't till I was all warm in bed that the full impact of the night's events hit me. And it hit me hard.

_Edward was real!_

This thought took a while to process. My idol, my god, my love, was really alive, and just a twenty minute bike ride away!

He was just as beautiful as I'd always pictured him. True, his behavior towards me had been less than friendly, but he was obviously protecting his family. That was the right thing for him to do. I had been the one trespassing on his land.

And what did Jasper do wrong? Why was Edward mad at him? It was only after I mentioned the book that he got angry with his brother. What did Jasper have to do with _Twilight, _other than the fact that he was in it?

Why were the Cullens here anyway? Edward was here for sure, and it had to have been Alice singing. Were any more of them there? Where was Bella?

I shook my head, trying to make sense of it all. At least I could ask Edward tomorrow at the diner. He said he had questions for me too. What could they be?

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, feeling utterly content. Suddenly the thought came to me that I could have just dreamed it all. What a horrible thought it was too, although not totally unreasonable. I had been known to dream about Edward before, and then believe it was real when I woke up. But this felt so much more real than ever before.

Well, I'd find out soon enough, tomorrow at the Way Diner, seven o'clock.

A/N I know that the story this far may have been quite predictable, but hopefully from here on out it will be much less so. Thanks for all your support and all reviews are welcome!


	4. Way Diner

Disclaimer: Very unfortunately, I do not own the rights to _Twilight _or _New Moon_. They belong to the amazing Stephanie Meyer. I wouldn't be writing this if it weren't for her.

A/N Sorry it took a little while to update. I'm off of vacation now, so I have to juggle schoolwork as well as my writing. Hopefully, however, I'll be able to update once a week. (No promises though!) I would like to thank my AMAZING editor, Edward Lover for Life. ( : So, with no further ado, here's chapter four!

Mrs. Dellir walked up and down the isles of desks, lecturing us on some part of grammar. She was talking to herself, however, for even the most attentive people in the class were finding themselves very drowsy.

I, being one who tuned out for most of the classes, was totally lost to my anticipation for my secret meeting with Edward. It had been occupying my mind for the whole day so far, and, as now was the perfect time to dream about Edward, I was gladly doing so.

"Kiera!"

I looked up to see Mrs. Dellir standing right over me. I quickly opened my notebook and grabbed a pen. She glared at me.

"If you don't take notes," she tapped the blank paper firmly "You will fail this class." She then walked off, and continued preaching.

Why me? No one else was taking notes, with one exception. I glanced over at Ivy, who had her hands flying over the keyboard of her laptop, recording every syllable that came out of Mrs. Dellir's mouth.

She paused, and we made eye contact. She gave me a mock disapproving look, giggled, and then turned back to her notes.

I grinned, then started to scribble on my notepaper. I had been debating all day whether or not I should tell Ivy what had happened last night. Sometimes I had been inclined to tell her, as she was my _Twilight _buddy and had the right to know anything that had happened between Edward and me.

Most of the time, however, I was completely for keeping it all a secret. It was, after all, me who discovered him; I deserved him all to myself. He never told me that I was able to tell anyone about his presence here. (I pushed out the nagging thought that he never told me that I _couldn't _tell anyone either.)

My mind made up, I picked up my books and ran out of the room as soon as the class was dismissed.

As it was the end of the day, I made my way over to my locker and started packing up my books.

Ivy, who wasn't the best runner, caught up with me and leaned against the wall, breathing heavily.

"Thanks for waiting," she grumbled, obviously annoyed.

"Sorry," I said, throwing books into my bag.

"Want to go see a movie tonight? There's one that looks really good."

"Sorry," I said again.

Her face fell and I searched for an explanation.

"I've got other plans, see you Monday!" I said bluntly and raced out of the building before she could say anything else.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in restless anticipation. I walked from room to room, humming and jumping up and down. My parents were still at work, and Dylan was at a friend's house.

As I needed him to drive me into town, I spent a lot of the time pacing in front of the door. The moment I heard his footsteps on the porch, I opened the door and stood in front of it.

"I need a ride."

He rolled his eyes.

"Well, that's too bad because you're not getting one."

"I'm not letting you in until you agree to take me to the Way Diner."

"In town?"

"That's the one."

"No."

"Well you're not getting into this house, then."

He gave me a look that clearly said how easy it would be to push me out of the way. I returned it with one that said I would tell mom and make the story sound much worse then it really had been. That won him over.

"Fine, but I'm not driving you back,"

Five minutes later I got out of the car at the diner. The minute I closed my door, Dylan pulled away and was off.

I glanced at my watched. 7:03. Damn. 3 minutes late.

Running up the steps two at a time, I arrived inside seconds later. My heart flipped when I saw Edward sitting in a booth at the far end of the room. I ran over and slid in across from him.

"You're late," he stated, before I could utter a greeting.

"I had to convince my brother to drive me."

"Can't you drive? How old are you?"

My heart swelled. He thought I was sixteen? Wow. That was a major compliment, at least for me. Dylan always said that my dirty blond hair made me look five, but Lacie said my long face and large eyes made me look at least twenty. Of course, she had said that only after I had been teased about my eyes. I liked them, but many people thought the purple was weird. They weren't bright purple, more of a blue-ish purple. They were purple, however, nonetheless.

Maybe it could have been my height that made me look older. I was one of the tallest girls in my grade, a fact that I love, for it makes me stand out.

"I'm fourteen," I answered, grinning

"Oh."

We sat in silence for a few minutes. During this time, I glanced up at his face. I quickly looked away, as his piercing glare was fixed right on me. My short look was enough to tell me that his eyes were a dark yellow, as if he hadn't eaten quite enough to be satisfied. It wasn't the soft topaz I had always dream of, but it was still an improvement from last night.

A waiter came over and asked us what we wanted. Edward didn't order anything, which I had expected.

"So," He said, as the waiter walked away. "Before I ask you a few questions, do you have any you want me to answer?"

It was hard to take my mind off his gorgeous face, but the questions that had been in my mind all day loomed over me.

"Why are you here?"

"I'll answer that later."

"Is Bella here?"

"That too."

"Is anyone else in your family here?"

"That's the third."

Growing frustrated, I brought up a topic that had nothing to do with the presence of anyone.

"Why were you mad at Jasper last night?"

Edward leaned back and stared at me for a few moments, thinking. "I can't answer that."

This got me mad. "Come on! You haven't answered anything so far! I won't tell anyone."

"You promise?"

Wow, I hadn't expected to be able to persuade him that easily, but apparently he was more able to tell me things than I had expected.

"Yup, I promise."

"Good." He took a big breath, as if willing himself to talk. "Jasper wrote _Twilight _and _New Moon._"

"But what about Stephanie Meyer?" I asked, extremely surprised.

"Pen name." He said simply. "Anyway, a few years back, he decided to write down what had happened when Bella had moved to Forks. He thought it was a great story and would make a perfect book. Everyone thought it was a great idea, especially when things happened in real life that made the story even better. What we didn't like, however, was when he published _Twilight. _He did it without informing us.It sold so well, that he decided to keep recording what was happening. The Volturi were especially against him publishing _New Moon, _as it was in direct violation of keeping us a secret. You can find Jasper can be very convincing, however, and he told them that people would be less inclined to believe in vampires because they read about them in a fantasy novel. Anyway, they believed him and gave him leave to keep writing."

Though I was surprised, my heart sank as I realized what must have happened. Years must have past between now and what happened in _New Moon. _Bella must be a vampire by now. She and Edward had probably gotten long ago.

"No," Edward said, "She's not a vampire yet, and we're not even close to being married. There's still so much more to do."

He must have noticed my alarmed expression so he quickly apologized. "Sorry, I just figured, as you've read the book, you wouldn't be surprised when I read your mind. My bad."

All excitement at seeing Edward vanished. He could read my mind! I had hoped that he might not be able to get inside my head, that I was immune to his power like Bella was. I hadn't really realized that this had been a hope of mine, but now when it was dashed, I felt a great disappointment.

"That's why I asked you how you knew me last night." He said softly. "You thought of me, and it frightened me."

Edward scared? I doubt that was true.

We sat in silence for a few minutes, both of us looking anywhere but at each other.

Finally Edward said, "Ok, you've had your chance to ask me questions, now it's my turn."

With great effort, I dragged my mind off my disappointment so I could listen completely. His first sentence, however, threw me into such surprise that every trace of any other thought in my mind disappeared in an instant.

"Kiera, I need your help."

Disclaimer: Just for the record, Stephanie Meyer is the real author of _Twilight _and _New Moon. _

A/N Thanks for all the support you've all given me so far! If you have suggestions or constructive criticism please e-mail me or review so I can make my stories better. Any compliments make my heart soar, so, if you have them, please review! Thanks again!


	5. Darkstone and Betrayal

Disclaimer: To put it simply: I do not own the rights to _Twilight _or _New Moon. _

Author's note: Here is chapter five! Yipeee! Hopefully the wait wasn't too long. Thanks to my AMAZING editor, who does so much for me. So, enjoy…

Edward needed my help? How did vampire need _my_ help?

"Sure, I'll do anything,"

He eyed me with slight disapproval, as if saying it wasn't good to agree to something before you knew what it was. I didn't care, though. I would bring back the moon for Edward. It seemed that the only reason I lived was for him.

"Well," he started, "After many long and tiring discussions, my family and I decided that it would be better if Bella's changing was be put off for a while. We shouldn't have to do things just because the Volturi says we have to. Bella didn't like this idea much, but she knew the only way I would change her would be if she waited. Carlisle would have done it, but Bella didn't think that was very romantic. Anyway, as we knew the Volturi would be on our tail, we left Forks to hide."

I tried to conceal my disbelief. How could you hide from a group of supreme vampires?

He shook his head as he read my thoughts.

"Have a little more faith, will you? We know what we're doing. True, it's difficult, but there are some tricks up our sleeves. Bella's in college in New York now. We figured that that the huge city would be the best place for her. She transferred out of Forks Community College as soon as she could. We all couldn't go to New York, though, because Jasper is still not able to control himself enough to be around so many people. So we've been traveling around the country, staying in places for about a month each. We want to make it harder for the Volturi to follow us, but still have time to get settled and have some peace and quiet."

They were only staying here for a month? How terrible was that!

He rolled his eyes, and I made a mental note not to think anything while around him, which of course he heard as well.

"Actually, Kiera, we're planning on staying here for a long time."

"What? Why here?'

"Because it's the perfect hiding place."

"Not really."

What was I doing? Every word I said might be keeping him from staying. Shut up, Kiera!

Edward chuckled at my thoughts, which only made me angrier.

"On the contrary, this place is great. Our scents are covered up, making it harder for the Volturi to suspect where we are. We have a suitable house, and there aren't enough people to cause Jasper pain. It's quite nice actually."

Something about this explanation didn't make sense.

"Edward, can't vampires smell other vampires from far off?"

He smiled, "Yes they can. But Jasper didn't include a little secret in his books. Look at this."

He gestured out the window. This town, Daffaden, was located in the middle of the Rockies. The sight Edward was referring to, the huge mountains with snow on the peaks, was normal for me.

"Yeah?" I said, wanting him to elaborate.

"Do you know how much gold are inside those?"

"Not much, most of it has been mined out. There wasn't much in the first place, though."

Edward smiled.

"Actually, no," he said smirking.

This got me mad; I knew I was right. All of eighth grade social studies had been on Colorado's history.

"This is a special type of gold. It looks just like normal rock-"

"So does regular gold, you just need to scrape off the-"

"Don't interrupt me again," he said sharply, and I fell silent. "I know this too, Kiera, I've taken multiple classes on Colorado, and I also know quite a lot about vampires. This gold reassembles plain rock, no matter how hard you scrape at it. Miners have thrown it away for centuries. Mind you, it's not worth very much, being how ugly it is, but it's valuable to us. This gold, called darkstone, fills all of these mountains. Never mind how much it is thrown away, it replenishes itself. Now, this dulls vampires' powers. If you were standing on the other side of a darkstone wall, I wouldn't be able to read your mind, Jasper wouldn't be able to sense your feelings, and no one could smell you."

My mouth fell open. I had lived in Colorado all my life and I never knew about this vampire power-preventing gold that was located right outside my window.

"We are completely beyond detection here, as we are surrounded and on top of it."

"Wow," was all I could say.

Edward grinned at my reaction. "Now, here comes your role in all this."

I had completely forgotten I had agreed to assist him. I don't see what I could do though; the Cullens seemed pretty well taken care of.

"Alice, Jasper and I have already arrived. Rosalie, Emmet, Carlisle and Esme are arriving in two weeks' time. It appears that you know this place well."

I nodded vigorously, "I've lived here since I was born."

"Good. I need all the information on this place. Also, I want you to introduce us to everyone at school."

"You're coming to Daffaden High?"

"Starting Monday."

"Yes!" I said, smiling as he chuckled, probably at my exuberant reaction.

"What year?"

"Junior."

Drat! Two higher than me.

"Anyway," he said, pulling me back into the conversation, "The last thing we want to do is stand out, so we have to act normal."

I looked at him skeptically. Did he really think he wouldn't stand out? People would surely realize if a god-like junior such as himself turned up at school.

"You know what I mean," he said, rolling his eyes "We want to be as normal as possible. If people see us associating with you, they might think us okay."

He was right. I was pretty popular at school, despite my book obsessions. My friends were considered cool by many others.

Although I had already agreed to help, I nodded again. It felt good to help him. Plus, it seemed I would need to spend a lot of time with him for this to work.

"Good, now tell me about this place."

Feeling more comfortable by the second, I branched into a long narrative of Daffaden. He soaked up every word. During the whole time, I never took my eyes off him. When my food came, I took a little break to eat, then continued.

Suddenly I felt a waft of cold brush up against my legs. I turned to see why the door was being held open for so long and saw two people step into the diner.

I froze.

It was Ivy and Lacie.

They were taking their time walking in, chatting and laughing together.

I made myself as small as possible. Why did they have to come in now?

Lacie was glancing around the room, and when her gaze fell on me, she smiled and waved brightly. I returned a much weaker wave and continued to slump down further in the booth. Lacie was all right, but I definitely didn't want Ivy seeing me here.

My heart sank, however, when Lacie turned to her friend and pointed in my direction. When she noticed me, her face showed a quick change of emotion. First, complete surprise, then curiosity, and then…livid anger.

She glared at me and I felt like I might melt under her gaze. She turned quickly and went to sit at the far end of the restaurant.

Nothing had escaped Edward's powerful eyes, and he gave me a questioning look. I shook my head, hoping he would soon forget it.

I spent another hour or so talking about Daffaden, but all too soon he put up a hand to stop me.

"Lunch tomorrow. You can finish then."

"Where?" I asked, my heart pounding.

"My place, you know where it is," he said, giving a small smile.

After the waiter had come over and collected the money Edward had produced, he stood up and left.

I sat there, feeling very self-conscious of being alone. I also knew Lacie at least would expect me to come over to say hello, which was totally what I didn't want to do. With a sigh, I stood up and started to walk towards their table. Halfway there, I met Lacie coming in the other direction.

"My parents wanted me home by nine," she said, knowing the question that was on my lips.

"Ok," I said, feeling suddenly a lot worse about going over and seeing Ivy, now that Lacie wouldn't be there.

"Oh, just to warn you, Ivy's really mad." She added in a lowered voice.

With this reassuring comment, she turned and walked out. Building up all the courage I had, I went over to Ivy.

When she saw me coming, she looked in the other direction. I slid into the seat next to her and put a hand on her shoulder. As soon as my fingers landed, she whirled around and glared at me. This time, though, her gaze was slightly less penetrating as her eyes were filled with tears.

"How could you do this to me?" she whispered, trying desperately to hold them back.

Could she have recognized Edward so easily? I decided to pretend I didn't understand.

"Done what?"

She furiously wiped away a tear that she had failed to stop and was trickling down her cheek

"You know perfectly well what!"

"No, I don't!"

She looked at me with so much hate that I cowered in my chair.

"You go out with someone, and don't even tell me?"

Ok, good, so she didn't know who it was.

"No, you've got it all wrong."

"Wrong? You're sitting there with a boy, what do you call that? 'Other plans'! I should have known. Actually, no! Why should I have known? I never dreamed you would ever do something like this to me!"

I was at a loss for words. She actually thought I was going out with Edward! While I struggled to explain, she continued.

"I mean, we're friends, right? Did you think I would try and take him from you or something? Did you think I would do something like that?"

"No, Ivy, just listen to me!"

"What have you got to say? Did you want to keep it a _secret_? Was it _romantic _for you?"

The sarcasm in her voice stung, but I held the tears back.

"Ivy," I said quietly

"I don't want to hear!" she sobbed. "You've betrayed me, Kiera!"

This was a bit extreme, but Ivy had the tendency of being a bit of a drama queen.

"Hardly."

"No!"

She was almost screaming now.

"You've betrayed our friendship. You've killed it! If you didn't want me as a friend any more, why couldn't you just tell me straight out instead of letting me find out like this?"

With that she stood up, dropped some money on the table, and ran out of the restaurant.

I felt completely and utterly terrible. What had happened? I hadn't meant to hurt Ivy; I hadn't meant to do anything to her. Now I had ruined our friendship, maybe forever.

I needed to call her and work things out, first thing tomorrow morning.

One thing was for sure, from Edward to Ivy, tomorrow was going to be one heck of a day.

A/N: Please review! Also, read Unexpected Lover by my friend and editor Edward Lover For Life. It's a great story!


	6. The Phone Call

Disclaimer: I am not Stephanie Meyer and no, I do not own the rights to either _Twilight _or _New Moon._

A/N Sorry it took too long to update! I cannot say how busy I've been. Tests and quizzes right and left, tons of homework, and I'm moving too. I know, excuses, excuses, but I promise I'm trying as hard as I can to update. Believe me, I would write instead of do schoolwork any day, if I could. Thank you for all your reviews, you guys are fantastic!

Editor's Note: Hey, it's Edward Lover for Life. I'm so sorry it's taken so long to post this chapter. Chocolate13 sent it to me a long time ago, but I was really swamped by quizzes and tests. Anyway, it finally up. Enjoy!

I'll admit it; I was terrified to call Ivy.

I shouldn't have been, Ivy was my best friend and I usually called her every night, it was our routine.

But now, would she even pick up? Would she talk to me at all? What if she didn't?

I spent about an hour sitting next to the phone trying to work up the courage to dial the number.

Finally, with a feeling of dread settling in my stomach, I picked up the receiver and put my fingers on the buttons.

7-2-1-2-0-0-7

My heart was pounding as I waited on the other end, my stomach in knots. After two rings, Ivy's dad answered.

"Hello, Wellman residence."

"Hey, Mr. Wellman, this is Kiera. Can I speak to Ivy please?"

"Sure, thing, Kiera. Wait one moment."

I tapped my fingers anxiously on the table and hummed softly. I heard a muffled conversation in which Ivy and her dad were having an argument.

"Dad, no, I don't want to speak to her!"

"Honey, she's your friend!"

"Yeah, but I really don't want to talk to her right now."

"Calm down. She's right here on the phone, dear."

It seemed from the sound issuing from the phone that Mr. Wellman had pushed it into Ivy's hand. For a second I thought she might hang up, but soon I heard a voice.

"Hi," it was low, quiet, and more of a mumble. She seemed agitated by the fact that I had called her when she obviously didn't want to talk.

"Hi. How are you?"

"Ok."

"That's good."

The conversation was stiff and void of all meaning, as if we were only just meeting each other for the first time.

"Ivy, I'm sorry," I said, breaking down.

There was silence, then a quiet sob. I held my breath, waiting for the answer.

"I'm sorry I got so mad too, Kiera. It's just, I came in and saw you sitting with that guy. And you hadn't told me that you were going out with anyone. I'm you're friend, right?"

Tears were appearing in my eyes at this point as well.

"Of, _course _you're still my friend. You'll always be, no matter what happens. I promise! As for going out with him, I'm not."

"Really? It sure looked like it."

"No, he's just a guy who's recently moved in and wanted some information on the town."

I wasn't lying, just leaving out a few details. For some reason I still wasn't ready to tell her about Edward, but I'd need to do it soon.

"Oh," There was another awkward pause and then, "He's pretty hot."

We both laughed, though a hint of annoyance crept into my mind. Was I really feeling jealous?

"Is he coming to school?"

"Yeah, Monday."

"Great! I can meet him then!"

So, Monday was to be the day that my secret left my control. Would Ivy be mad that I hadn't told her about who the mysterious guy was? Hopefully not. I couldn't help but feel disappointed that it couldn't last longer. At least Edward was still staying for a long time.

"Yeah," I said distractedly

"Do you want to go to the movies tonight? I still haven't seen the one I told you about."

I remembered how I had blown her off yesterday so that I could be with Edward, and my conscience told me it would be terrible if I did that again. Plus, it would be nice to spend some time with Ivy.

"Yeah, sure! What time?"

I could almost feel her smile from her side of the phone.

"I can meet you at the theater at six."

"Sure, then we can go and get some dinner afterwards."

"Great!"

Her voice was thick was enthusiasm, and I knew there was no sarcasm embedded there.

"Ok, see you then!"

I hung up the phone and breathed a sigh of relief. Ivy was still my friend, but no thanks to me.

Checking my watch, I was startled to find that it was twelve o'clock already. When Edward said lunch, did he mean noon?

Having already been late once and not wanting to make it a habit, I raced down the stairs and ran straight into Dylan, who was crossing the hallway.

"No," he said, before I could ask, and walked off.

Bristling at how well he knew me, I ran out the door and was on my bike in a flash. As fast as a vampire. Almost. Well, maybe not.

As I rode, my feelings were very similar to Bella's in _Twilight_. I giggled as I recalled Edward's words.

"_And you're worried, not because you're headed to meet a house full of vampires, but because you think those vampires won't approve of you, correct?"_

"Yup," I answered to myself, grinning.

Edward seemed to find me all right, so maybe the others would too. But what would they think of me as? I wasn't his girlfriend, my heart sank at this notion, so they wouldn't like me as much as Bella. But I had agreed to help them in this place, and that had to account for something.

I had dreamed of meeting Alice and Emmet all my life, and I had always wanted to see what it felt like when Jasper changed my emotions. Was Rosalie really as pretty as I had imagined her? And then I had always yearned to see for myself the centuries-old youth, Carlisle; and Esme, the embodiment of love.

All too soon, for I wasn't quite ready, I was turning off onto the Cullens' long, curving driveway.

On a turn, I glanced to my right and saw a flash of red. As soon as I could, I looked back, but it was gone.

An eerie feeling settling in my stomach, I tried to forget it. How annoying my imagination was sometimes!

It was a nice day, and the property didn't look as scary as it had on Thursday night. One of the windows had been opened to let some of the fresh air in, and a nice, warm, welcoming feeling came out through it.

I leaned my bike up against a tree and started walking toward the house, trying to arrange my wandering thoughts.

The walk seemed a lot longer than it should have been, the distance between myself and the door never getting any shorter. However, sooner than I expected, I was ascending the steps to the front door.

I felt like I was entering a courtroom, where I would be tried to see if I was good enough to be friends with the Cullens. I knew everyone would be watching me closely and every move I made would be examined.

Yet, the door did not seem like the kind of one that would lead to such a formal trial. Instead, it was a dark wood that resembled a normal door so much that for a moment I completely forgot who was occupying the space beyond it.

I was procrastinating, of course, trying to put off the moment of entering for as long as possible. The similarity between now and this morning with Ivy hit me strongly, and I needed another few moments to get myself calm enough to reach up and knock softly on the door.

Scaring me half to death, a voice sounded immediately from the other side of the door.

"Come on in, Kiera."

It wasn't Edward's voice, I could tell that much. But beyond that, I had absolutely no idea who was on the other side of the door, waiting for me.

Taking a deep breath and building up all the courage I had in my body and mind, I grasped the handle and pushed the door open.

A/N: Review please! Also, a big round of applause for my great editor, Edward Lover for Life! Thanks for reading, everyone!

A/N Just for the record, the quote I used is on page 320 of _Twilight. _Also, I know the phone number isn't really a Colorado one.


	7. What Have I Done?

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to _Twilight _or_ New Moon_.

A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, but I know the next one will be up shortly!

I wasn't sure who I had expected to see behind the door. Something in my heart told me that it was someone hostile, one who cared nothing for my life. However, as the door swung open, the figure was one who I had dreamed of meeting my whole life.

Alice was standing in the center of the vestibule, exactly as I had imagined her. She stood straight and tall with the perfect posture I had seen only in portraits of Victorian ladies. She was slender which complimented her beautiful hour glass shape. Her face, pixie-like, was framed by short black hair that was pulled up into a messy bun.

I had not expected her to run up to me and greet me excitedly, as she did with Bella, but subconsciously I had thought that she would merely say hello pleasantly and offer to take my coat. What I hadn't expected, however, was for her to just stand there staring at me.

Her features showed no real emotion, but there was a cold emanating from her, almost as forcible as a northern icy blast. Her lips twitched with a grimace.

I wasn't exactly sure how to respond to this, for I didn't understand. Did she not like me? Our chances for friendship seemed slim, if she disliked me before she had even met me. What had I done?

"Hi Alice," I said hesitantly, slowly stepping inside and closing the door behind me.

"Hello Kiera," she said. Her voice was thin and crisp, void of any feeling.

We stood there for the most awkward minute of my life. She stood, looking over me as I stared at the floor, trying to gain enough courage to speak. Finally, after searching for what seemed like an eternity, I came up with something to say.

"Where's Edward?"

"Out."

"Oh. When will he be back?"

"Soon."

Her one-word answers displayed her unwillingness to talk to me. I bit my lip nervously, hoping she might start the next bit of dialogue.

She seemed, finally, to realize her guest was feeling extremely uncomfortable and led me into what she said was the living room. It was a fancy room, with antique tables, ornamental rugs and old-fashioned couches. There was a large window on the far wall, facing out towards the mountains. It let in a bright light that made the room seem very welcoming.

My heart slowed down as I placed myself on a couch that Alice indicated. She sat on another about ten feet away.

"I like your house," I said, as cheerfully as possible.

At last, a bit of warmth flickered into her eyes, and the corners of her mouth twitched.

"Thank you. I like it too. We're doing a bit of remodeling, though. The whole ground floor is going to be one room, just like in Forks.''

This was by far the most she had said yet. I soaked up her pretty voice that I had only heard once before; that night when she was singing. It wasn't as light and cheery as it had been, but still as soft and wonderful.

"How are you going to get someone to do the job? Someone might wonder why…" I trailed off, knowing she would understand.

"If you have someone like Emmet living in the house, knocking down walls is a cinch."

We both laughed. Hers sounded like chimes being moved by the wind. Mine was more of a long line of giggles. Maybe she had forgiven me for whatever I had done.

We both heard the sound of the front door opening and then Edward strode into the room. He grinned when he saw us both there.

"I see you two have already met. So, how do you like each other?" He said, flopping down gracefully next to Alice.

"A lot," I said, entranced as always by his beauty.

Alice seemed to have turned back to a statue.

"She's tolerable," she said, through tightly pursed lips.

My heart sank as I heard her words. Hadn't we just been laughing together?

Edward looked concerned too. With a knitted brow he stared intently at Alice's face. She, not giving anything away, stood up and walked out of the room.

Edward shook his head, smiled, and then turned to me. I shivered when I saw his beautiful eyes staring at me.

"It drives me crazy when she blocks her mind!"

"Is she mad at me?"

"No." When he said his, his glance shifted to the wall.

"Oh, Edward, please! Tell me the truth!"

He looked at me hard, as if judging how much he should say. Finally he sighed in resignation.

"I'm not sure, actually."

"You saw her as clearly as I did; there's definitely something wrong."

"Hmmm…," he said, staring off into space, thinking for a moment. "Yes, I don't think she likes you very much."

He looked at me, readying himself for my reaction. I had been expecting the comment, though, so I wasn't too surprised.

"Why?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"Did I do something?"

"No, I don't think so. She didn't seem too pleased from the moment I told her about you."

"Maybe she's mad about me prowling around your house that night."

"I doubt it. She's pretty forgiving."

I could tell there was something he wasn't saying. Maybe it was something he knew, or just something he suspecting. Nevertheless, it was something.

We talked for about another hour about Daffaden. I told him about school, about the different streets, about the best ski mountains and the warmest lakes. I had no idea how he sat through it all, for it would have bored any normal person out of their wits. He soaked it all up, though, absorbing every word.

I ran out of things to say at precisely the same time that my stomach gave a loud growl. Edward smiled.

"Hungry?"

"A little, to tell you the truth."

"We could go to a restaurant or something."

I wasn't going to let him treat me to a meal two days in a row.

"I'm fine, honestly."

He knew that I really was hungry, but decided that I wasn't going to relent. He sighed in defeat and I giggled.

"So, any big event coming up at school?"

I dragged my mind away from Edward and tried focusing back on a normal topic.

"Well, student council election is on Tuesday."

"And you're running."

It wasn't a question; he knew I was going out for president. I had won the position since 6th grade and wasn't planning on stopping now.

At that moment, someone walked into the room. He was tall, with shoulder-length blond hair that shone brightly in the room. I hardly noticed him at first, for he seemed to blend in with his surroundings, like a chameleon. Once I did realize his presence, I knew who it was.

"Jasper?" I asked hesitantly

"Hi, Kiera."

He stepped closer, though kept a considerable distance away. I noticed his eyes were pretty dark.

"I heard you were a fan of my books."

"Yeah, they're great. My friends and I are _obsessed_ with them!"

"Thanks. But the ideas aren't exactly original." He grinned at Edward "I doubt anyone could actually make up a character like him."

He was right; Edward was too amazing for someone to think up.

"Is _Eclipse _really coming out this summer?"

"I don't know. It was supposed to, but not enough has happened to make a good story yet. You might have to wait a little longer."

"Awww, I was counting down the days!"

I had so many questions for him, but Jasper seemed to be getting more and more uncomfortable by the second. He was staring at his feet and his mouth was clamped tightly down.

"Why don't you go see what Alice is up to?" Edward had noticed it too.

Jasper seemed relieved at the opportunity to go.

"Have a nice day Kiera."

He left the room quickly, as if he was holding his breath underwater and needed to swim to the surface quickly to breathe.

"Poor Jasper," Edward muttered, "It's impossible to explain how agonizing it is to resist the temptation."

I felt a flutter of fear inside as I looked at Edward. Would he try as hard around me as he did with Bella? Or would he not care as much?

His face softened at my thoughts.

Sitting down next to me, he slowly raised his hand and touched my cheek. His cool touch gave me goose bumps, and my heart tingled just like Bella's did.

"Don't be afraid," he whispered "I will never hurt you."

All too suddenly, he stood up.

"I have to go now," he said. "How 'bout we meet tonight?"

My excitement felt like it would overflow my body.

"Where?"

"Here, five o'clock. I want to show you something."

"Sure," I replied, excited to see him again.

He grinned as he walked over to the doorway.

"Till then," he said softly.

I blinked, and he was gone.

A/N Review please! Thank you for reading!


	8. Preparation

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to _Twilight _or _New Moon. _They belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N Here's a chapter to make up for the past long delays. Its been worked very hard on by myself and especially my editor who stayed up _very _late editing this. Love you! Hope you enjoy it!

I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on my bed, lost in my thoughts.

This had been the best weekend of my life; I had met my idol, I was living my dream. How many people could say that they had done that? I was the luckiest person in the world.

I could not get the feeling of Edward's touch on my cheek out of my mind. It had been a casual gesture on his part, as he tried to sooth my growing fears. Yet, at the same time, there seemed to be a deeper meaning to it. Could he possibly like me?

Never. He loved Bella. I was merely a way to help his family in this new town. We could be friends, but nothing more. But, still, maybe…

Also present in my mind was the memory of the flash of red in the trees. I couldn't seem to forget it. Ignoring the nagging suspicion of what it could be, I tried convincing myself it was a cardinal, maybe, or a hat that someone had dropped last winter. But most of the birds were making their way south at this point in the fall, and articles of clothing usually didn't tend to move in such a way to make a flash.

Along with this, I had a powerful sensation that I was being watched everywhere I went. I was constantly glancing around my room, out the window, onto the street. When I looked into my mirror, I half expected someone to appear behind me, like in horror movies. But it seemed no one was there or, if they were, they were not going to show themselves directly.

At four, all worries were moved to the back of my mind as I faced the bigger problem of what to wear to Edward's.

"He said he wants to show me something! What the hell am I going to wear?" I muttered to myself as I tossed all the clothes out of my closet.

Was he going to take me out to some grand place or something very low-key? Was he taking me anywhere at all? Should I wear a dress or just a pair of jeans? Why couldn't he have been more specific?

After spending an hour shoving through my clothes thoroughly, I decided that Edward would have told me if I needed to wear something fancy.

Jeans were good for a whole lot of situations, and hardly ever looked out of place. I chose the pair that were my second-tightest. If I wore the skin-tight ones, I might not be able to move around if action was needed.

Choosing a top was easy. I grabbed my favorite t-shirt, the one that said Edward's Lover across the chest with hearts sprinkled around the words. It was worn around the neck from excessive use, but I still adored wearing it anytime I could.

I brushed my hair for about fifteen minutes, then tried putting it up in various ways. I finally gave up and let it hang loose around my shoulders.

After slipping on some sneakers and pulling on a fleece I ran downstairs and out the front door.

There, just as he had promised, was Dylan. He was leaning against the car with a resigned expression on his face.

Apparently, he would do almost anything for money.

I directed him to the Cullen's driveway. When we arrived, he looked at me sternly, straight on.

"Kiera, you know you shouldn't be coming back here. You don't know who even lives in the house." He was using his big-brother voice. Yuck.

"I do know them! My friend lives there! I swear."

"You can't fool me. I've driven you to all your friend's houses before, and this certainly isn't one of them."

I knew every excuse I gave he would find away around. Instead of arguing further, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and waved it in front of his face.

"If you stop asking questions and don't tell anyone, I'll give you this."

"Twenty? Hell no. That's not enough to keep me quiet. Fifty."

"Thirty-five."

He hesitated, then, "Deal."

I got out of the car and right before I closed the door, he said, "I'm just trying to do what's best for you, ok? You have to understand that."

It was a pretty sentimental thing to say, for him. I chose to be equally nice back.

"I know, Dyl. It's just, this has to be secret."

"I just don't want you getting hurt."

"I won't, I promise. But, are you sure the only reason you don't want me to be in danger is because you're afraid you'll get in trouble for it?"

He glared at me and twitched with anger.

"Is that what you think? That I don't care about you!"

"Well sometimes it seems that way!"

Our voices were growing angrier. I should have known the calm conversation wouldn't last for very long.

"When have I ever not helped you?"

"Quite a few times, actually."

"That is not true and you know it."

"It is, ask anyone."

"You're so immature."

"Just look at yourself, stupid!"

"Is that the best insult you can come up with? Stupid?"

"Well, I didn't know if you could handle some of the words I have up my sleeve."

"Oh, try me!"

The fact was I didn't know any very good comebacks, and he knew that as well as I did. So, I just slammed the door shut and marched onto the driveway.

Behind me, Dylan turned around so sharply that he almost hit a tree, and drove off as fast as lightning.

We would never meet the same again.

A/N Sorry for the shortness, but I thought it was a good way to end this chapter. I can't promise chapter 9 will be up in the next few days, but I'll try as hard as I can. Review please!


	9. Twilight

Disclaimer: No, Edward is not mine. Neither are Stephanie Meyer's rights to _Twilight _and _New Moon_.

A/N My sincerity in this apology is completely true. I'm so sorry I haven't updated. I have about 1000 excuses, but I won't bore you by listing them. They probably wouldn't compensate for these last few weeks anyway. Unfortunately, I doubt I'll be able to update for another few weeks. I'm about to start preparing for exams and who knows if I'll get just a millisecond of free time. As soon as they are over, however, I'll try to write a lot more. Here's a nice long chapter for you all to read. Enjoy and thanks for your patience!

Edward was waiting for me, leaning up against a tree in front of the house. He came into view as I made the last turn. There he was, standing as beautiful as always.

I lay my bike down and skipped over to him. He grinned and waved.

"Hi Edward!" I said as I reached him.

"Hey, Kiera."

I noticed that we stood about five feet away from each other and something inside told me it would not be wise to move closer.

Happily, I realized that if Edward was waiting out here for me, than we probably weren't going to go back inside. That meant no Alice.

Over the last few hours a fear of Alice had been mounting inside me, getting larger every second. She hated me, and she could hurt me. She could kill me.

I gulped involuntarily and Edward frowned at my thoughts. Damn! When would I learn to control them?

"Not for a while," he answered my unspoken question. "Even my siblings still have trouble shielding them from me."

His consolation, however, did not include anything about Alice, and I drove this thought out of my mind as quickly as possible. Perhaps it would look to Edward like a book's pages being flipped; so that he saw only small, tiny, glimpses of each page, not enough to understand any of the meaning.

"So, what do you think I'm going to show you?'

I shrugged, eager to know.

"Guess."

"Awww, Edward."

"Come on, just one guess, it won't hurt you."

I glared at him playfully.

"Ok…you're going to take me to a church and we'll get married!"

I said as if I were only kidding, and I could feel that my face was not betraying the fact that this was not really just a joke, that I really wouldn't mind if it did happen after all. This thought was out so quickly that I doubt Edward even knew that one had entered my mind at all.   
"Wrong," he smirked.

"What is it?"

"You'll just have to see for yourself."

He laughed and suddenly moved forward. He grabbed my waist and lifted me up into the air and down onto his back.

The whole thing had happened so fast that I was quite dazed. I grasped his stone-hard shoulders and wrapped my legs as far around his torso as possible.

"Comfy?" he asked

I was far more comfortable than he could ever imagine, pressed up against his perfect body, my hands so close to his skin. Luckily, as he was talking at the moment, he wasn't listening to my thoughts.

"Now, I've only done this with Bella, and her first time was tough. Just keep your eyes closed and hold on tight."

And off he went.

Of course I kept my eyes open, I would never dream of missing this. I had always thought Bella a wimp, and this experience added to my conviction.

It was wonderful. As an athlete myself, the pure thrill of such great acceleration nearly killed me. Add to that being on the back of the best creature on Earth, I might as well be leaving my body already.

Utterly content, I leaned my head against the back of his neck and breathed in the sweetest smell I had ever encountered.

I sucked in, enjoying every particle of air that entered my nostrils. Edward might have noticed, but he didn't say anything.

We were running through a forest, one that I had never been in before. Or at least, I thought I hadn't. Everything looked so different speeding past us so fast.

All too soon, Edward was slowing down. He reached back and lowered me to the ground, as gently as a mother laying her baby down to sleep and as easily as a grown man picking up a feather.

I looked around; we were still in what looked like the middle of the forest. Edward was smiling again.

"Now close your eyes."

"Why?"

"Because I want to show you something."

"Fine."

I closed my eyes. Suddenly I felt very vulnerable, standing blind in the middle of an unknown forest.

"Are you alright walking like this?"

"Sure. I know how to, I've hiked through woods tons of times. Just guide me and tell me if there's a rock. Ok?"

"You definitely are sure."

"The word is competent."

He laughed and started to lead me.

About five minutes later, I started to feel grass slipping past my ankles. Then, Edward's hand left my forearm.

"Count to ten, then open your eyes."

I felt, more than heard, him moving away.

After ten, I slowly opened my eyes and gasped.

I was in Forks.

At least, it seemed like it. The clearing was small and almost perfectly round, exactly as I had imagined the one in _Twilight. _

The night turned the clearing into a magical place. There were fireflies dancing in the tall grass, crickets chirped dimly, and the whole area was lit by the moon.

"Where am I?' I whispered, turning in a circle.

"Daffaden, Colorado."

I jumped. I had forgotten Edward was there. He was apparently standing behind some trees lining the forest, and I couldn't see him.

"Really?"

"Yup."

It didn't seem like the Daffaden I knew. This place was so carefree and fantastic, Daffaden was just a normal town.

Why was Edward still hiding in the trees? Was something wrong?

"Kiera, I'm going to come out now." It sounded like a warning to brace myself.

"Ok."

He stepped out of the trees and I gasped once again.

Apparently, the moonlight affected his skin like the sunlight did. His appearance, though not as spectacular as sparkling, was far more beautiful.

He was glowing.

It looked as if he was merely a lampshade and inside him was a light bulb. It was faint but breathtaking nonetheless.

He grinned at my reaction, then flopped down on the grass.

Uncertain, I walked over to him and sat down. He was lying on his back with his arms behind his head, looking up at the sky. It was twilight, I noticed with glee.

Still keeping my distance, I lay down beside him and looked up too.

"I found this place yesterday, after our talk at the diner. It's so similar to the one in Forks, it brings back good memories."

We lay in silence. thinking and watching the sky turn darker. This was perfection, lying in a meadow so far from anyone else with Edward. I sat up and looked down at him.

If I hadn't known better, I would have said he was asleep, his face being so peaceful. I knew he wasn't listening to my thoughts, for I was beginning to be able to feel when someone else was inside my mind.

Suddenly an immense longing sprang into my mind, compelling me to lower my face to his, to kiss him.

I started to, but quickly pulled back.

No, I couldn't.

"Is everything ok?" He had noticed my stained expression.

"Yeah."

"Do you have a watch?"

It was already ten o'clock. I had no idea we had spent that long here.

"I'm guessing you need to get home."

I nodded slowly, not wanted the evening to end. At least we had one last run left.

I held on tight, sucking in his smell and thrilling in the cool, hard, reassuring feel of his body beneath by hands.

We ran all the way to my house. There weren't too may people out and he ran mostly through the woods edging the roads.

Far too clumsily, I clambered off his back and stood looking back up at him.

Wasn't this where he was supposed to kiss me goodnight, right outside my front door?

But he just smiled and said, "I'm going somewhere with Alice tomorrow, so I'll see you Monday, ok?"

"Yup."

"Alright then."

And he was off.

After making myself a sandwich, I started upstairs, only to find my mother, furious, blocking the staircase.

"Where on earth have you been?" she screamed

"Out."

"I noticed. Do you know what time it is? You have no idea how worried I've been."

"Mom, its Daffaden, what could possibly have happened?"

"Yes, but you didn't tell us you were getting back this late."

"It's Dylan's fault, he didn't come to pick me up."

Apparently, mentioning Dylan was perhaps not the smartest move in getting past my mom.

"He's gone."

"What?"

"Dylan's gone. He left this evening. We found a note on the table saying he'd gone to stay at a friend's house for an entire week! What am I going to do? He's not going to get any homework done and he didn't even say which friend it was, so I can't call him up and tell him to get back here at once."

I couldn't help but think that Dylan's sudden departure might have had something to do with our argument.

"But he'll be back soon, right?"

"Next Saturday, the note said. Yell at him at school tomorrow, will you?"

I grinned; my parents were usually trying to get us to stop getting mad at each other, and had never encouraged a fight.

After showering, I got into bed and as usual lay thinking for quite some time, thoughts swirling in continuing circles.

Could he like me? Could he love me?... Maybe, as he hasn't seen Bella in a while, he might…I'm so much more fun than Bella, I'm not a scaredy cat, I'm outgoing and athletic, like him…He seems to enjoy my company… Could he like me?….He did ask take me to the clearing tonight…Could he love me?... He was upset that Alice didn't like me, that means he likes me, right?...Why didn't Alice like me anyway?...Could he like me?...I can't wait to see Ivy's reaction when I tell her-

I sat bolt upright and glanced at my clock.

It was already past midnight. How could I have forgotten my plans with Ivy? The excitement with Edward must have driven it from my mind. She was so excited that I was finally doing something with her, and now, I'd let her down, again. Boy, she must be mad.

Now this was added to my thoughts as I lay down again.

Would Ivy ever talk to me again?...Why did Alice hate me?...What was that flash in the trees I saw this morning, could it really be…Maybe Lacie could talk Ivy into being friends with me again, or would she be angry too?...What will school be like on Monday? …I wonder how mad Dylan is. Will he ever forgive me?...Could Edward like me?.. Could he love me?...


	10. School

A/N Here it is: chapter ten. Hopefully I'll be able to post another chapter before I leave for camp. Then you'll have to wait three weeks until another. Sorry, but I can't bring my laptop to camp! So with no further ado, here is chapter ten! (review please!)

Overall, it had been a pretty awful morning.

I had called Ivy several times, with only one being successful. The conversation had been short; or maybe miniscule would be the better word.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Ivy, it's Kiera."

Beep. She'd hung up.

The other calls had gotten no answer and unfortunately her dad wasn't there this time to make her talk to me.

I could just imagine her sitting there next to the phone, listening to my messages.

"Ivy? You there? I really want to talk to you! Call me back as soon as you get this!"

They got more and more desperate until I was practically sobbing into the phone.

"Ivy, please pick up! I'm so sorry about last night, will you ever forgive me? I swear I never meant to, it completely slipped my mind. Pick up, please, oh please!"

We didn't hear anything from Dylan either. I had been hoping he would call just to get on our nerves, but he didn't.

I had come down to two conclusions. One, he had suddenly matured so much that he did not take pleasure in annoying me anymore (which was very unlikely); or two, something was terribly wrong,

I wasn't sure why I thought that, there wasn't much evidence to prove my second theory correct. It was just a feeling I had in the pit of my stomach that something was out of place.

The next day was cold and wet. The first thought that popped into my head when I woke up was that I would be seeing Edward shortly and the next was that the same would be true with Ivy. Once I met her face to face, she couldn't possibly run away.

I dressed with special care, wolfed down some breakfast, pulled on my rain jacket and ran out the door.

It was then that I realized I had no way of getting to school. My mom and dad had left a few minutes ago for work, and Dylan, my usual ride, was off with his friends. I thought of the two-mile journey from here to school, took a glance up at the dark gray clouds and the rain pelting down, and felt like curling up in a ball and crying.

Suddenly, I was blinded by a bright light. Putting my hand up to my eyes, I saw a car pulling into the driveway.

It was a silver Volvo.

The window rolled down and with a thrill I recognized Edward grinning at me.

"Need a ride?"

Feeling much better, I ran to the other side of the car and was just about to open the passenger door when I saw Alice glaring at me from the other side.

I slipped as gracefully as possible into the back seat and pulled down my hood.

"How did you know to get me?"

"I heard your thought from a few streets away."

"Oh." I didn't know he could hear that clearly.

"Your thoughts are pretty loud." Edward laughed and I joined in hesitantly.

"Yes, most _young_ teenage girls do think and act in a loud sort of way." A smirk was playing on Alice's lips.

We didn't talk anymore until we had parked in the lot at school. Alice climbed out and was gone in a flash.

Edward opened my door and together we walked towards the buildings. It was so unfortunate that we both had jackets covering our faces; else I would be the envy of all the girls in the school.

"So Alice is still mad at me, huh?"

"She's not mad."

"Yeah right."

"Ok, a little upset. Nothing for you to worry about, though."

Unconvinced, I dropped him off at the main office and trotted off towards my locker. Lacie was waiting for me, munching on an apple and leaning against the wall.

"Hi Kiera."

She, at least, was friendly enough. We talked a bit about things we had done over the weekend and then started off together to first period Spanish.

"Have you seen Ivy today?"

"Yeah."

I glanced sideways at her. She was determinedly not looking at me.

"And?"

"Well, I'm sure you can guess what she's like."

This was exactly was I had hoped would not happen. Wouldn't our strong friendship help cover this up, or had a made too big of a mistake this time?

"I don't think she's just mad about Saturday night, but it was kind of the last straw after Friday, you know?"

I nodded. I guess I understood, but I still thought she was overreacting.

Ivy was already in the classroom when we arrived. She had saved one seat next to her and patted it.

"Sit over here."

Not thinking, I walked over and was about to reach for the chair when she pulled it away.

"Not for you, stupid. I'm saving it for my friend."

Stung, I moved away and sat in the back, thinking what I could possibly to make things better.

The next few periods past very slowly. Ivy was completely ignoring me. This was far worse than the mean comments and cold glares I had prepared myself for all of last night.

In English, I got a huge surprise.

"Alright, books away, class. Hurry up now, you only have forty minutes as it is." Mrs. Dellir said in her usual crisp voice.

"Why?" I said blankly, praying that we weren't going to have a pop quiz.

"We have a test, Kiera." She said disapprovingly

"What? Since when?" I was aghast, I didn't remember anything about a test.

"Since the beginning of the year, dearie. It's been on your calendar for weeks. Do you recall our review day on Friday?"

I nodded, trying to keep my face from showing the shock. Of course I recalled no such thing. My thoughts had been deeply preoccupied with Edward that day, and I had forgotten all about the test over the weekend. Apparently I was going to pay for my lapse of memory.

This day was turning out to be no better then the one before.

Feeling increasingly miserable, I walked down the hallway after English, trying to remember if there was at least one question I could get partial credit on.

I stopped suddenly, hearing a familiar laugh. I peered around the corner and was surprised to see a group of freshmen girls huddled around one in the center. Moving closer, I could see exactly who it was.

"Ivy, are you sure?"

"Yeah, I saw her."

"Ginny is going to be so mad!"

"Oh yeah, I forgot." Ivy continued, with a mad smile on her face "I saw her making out with Tommy too."

"What?" One of girls seemed to growl.

"I walked in on her yesterday in the empty Latin room."  
"How could she do that?" The girl whimpered and I could see a tear run down her cheek.

"Because she's a slut." Ivy said, with a malicious glint in her eye.

"But Kiera's always seemed so nice."

My stomach dropped. What rumors were Ivy spreading about me? I wanted to go over and tell them it was a lie, but I couldn't move, I couldn't speak.

"That's just her disguise," continued Ivy, "Believe, me, I used to be friends with her. Then I realized what she was."

"Thanks for the warning, Ivy."

"Yeah, now we can watch out."

"What other guys has she made out with?"

Finally I was able to move. Before I could hear Ivy's answer, I ran away from the group of girls, which was getting larger every second.

How could she betray me like that? Now the whole grade would be against me.

Tears were beginning to well up in my eyes. I blinked furiously and turned another corner so sharply that I bumped into someone going the other way.

"Ouch! Sorry!" I looked up into the face of Dylan's best friend, Mark.

"Oh, hey, Kiera!" he laughed. "Is Dylan sick?"

"No. Isn't he at your house?"

"Nope. Why would he be there?"

"Well he left a note saying he had gone to stay at someone's house. I just figured it was yours."

"I have no idea where he could be. All of our friends are at school today, and he isn't here with any of them."

My heart turned over. Mark looked down at my worried face.

"Listen, Kiera, I'm sure he's fine. You know as well as I do that he's not the sort of person to do anything really bad."

"Yeah, but he's not the sort of person to skip school either."

Mark smiled, "I wouldn't put it past him."

He was trying to cheer me up, so I smiled back and pretended to be feeling better. As soon as he was out of sight, though, my grin vanished. I was worried sick. It was alright for Mark so say that Dylan wasn't in trouble, but he didn't know that a group of vampires were living here, maybe with an evil one tailing them.

The rest of the day was terrible. All the girls were glaring at me throughout the classes and in every hall way there seemed to be someone talking about me.

"Did you hear about Kiera and Willy?"

"Mandy is so mad at Kiera!"

"Kiera actually got caught after school yesterday by Mr. Fernod. She and Jason got in so much trouble!"

I didn't see Edward all day. I passed Alice in the hallway once, but she just ignored me and kept walking.

After school was done, I grabbed my things and hurried outside, eager to get away from everyone.

Lacie was waiting for me. As soon as I walked out the door, she came up and wrapped her arms around me.

I couldn't hold them back any longer. Tears flooded out of my eyes and I sobbed and sobbed.

Lacie held me close and rubbed my back. "Its okay, Kiera. Calm down, its okay."

"N-no it's n-not!" I cried "H-have you heard w-what people have been s-saying?"

"Yes, I have. But I know for sure that they're all lies."

I looked up into her face and I felt an immense wave of gratitude flow through me for this perfect friend that cared so much.

"Really?"

"Kiera, do you really think I would?"

"No, I guess not. But Ivy-"

"She's being a bit of a jerk right now, yes-"

"A bit! She's been-"

"Kiera, listen to me! Look at it from her point of view. You did abandon her on Saturday."

"Yeah, I know. I feel terrible about it! But can't she just accept my apology?"

"That's where she's in the wrong. She's taken it way too far."  
"Now everyone hates me!"

I started crying again, and Lacie continued to rub my back. "I don't hate you."

I knew this was the truth. Lacie had never been mad at me before, and I knew she never would be.

"Oh, you're the best!"

I hugged her back.

Feeling much more loved and slightly better, I walked out to the parking lot with Lacie.

Edward was leaning against his car, smiling broadly when he saw me.

"Who's that?" Lacie whispered in my ear.

"Edward."

Even though she hadn't read _Twilight_, Lacie had heard Ivy and I talk about it enough to recognize the name.

"I'll call you later." I said meaningfully. Then I walked over to the car.

"Alice is going home with Jasper." He said before I could ask.

"Was he at school today too?"

"Yes, but he came in a separate car."

I slipped into the passenger seat and we were off.

"What's wrong?"

He had noticed my puffy eyes.

"Oh, just a bad day at school."

"I hate those."

He had enough sense to not ask what exactly had gone badly, and I quickly covered up my thoughts.

I noticed that we weren't going the right way to my house.

"Edward, where are we going?"

"Well, I thought you might want to do your homework at my place. I could help, if you want."

My heart leapt. "Sure, I'd love to!"

"And after we're finished, maybe we could go out to the meadow again."

I nodded happily, hoping that maybe something today could go right.


	11. He Returns

Disclaimer: The rights to _Twilight _belong to Stephanie Meyer, the lucky duck.

A/N Hello all! Here is chapter 11. It is not the longest one, but I'm hoping (let me emphasize that, _hoping) _on posting at least one more between now and Saturday morning. After that, as I said last chapter, no more for three weeks. Thanks for all the support you've given me, please continue to read and review, and have a great summer!

For the first time in my life, I had lost the student council elections.

I had been class president since sixth grade, always elected by unanimous vote. Although the blow hit me hard, part of me knew it would happen.

It now seemed that not only were all the girls in the grade furious at me, but the boys as well. All the males who Ivy had accused me of making out with had been dumped by their girlfriends. No doubt the girls were just as angry at their boyfriends as they were at me. The boys were all in agreement that this was my fault. Adding to this, they also believed that it was I who had started the rumors in the first place, trying to get some attention.

I sat my seat for a while after the names of the student council representatives were called, as everyone left around me. I felt slightly numb and stunned. I had given my speech the day before, after working hours and hours on it. That same day the votes had been cast, how I'd hoped there had been many for me.

A sudden idea entering my mind, I stood up and hurried out of the room.

I walked briskly to Mr. Skenson's office. He was our class dean and had counted the votes.

"Come in," he said in response to my knock.

"Hi Mr. Skenson."

"Something I can help you with?"

"Yes. Could you tell me how many votes I got?"

He eyed me seriously. We weren't supposed to know that. I had to find out though. If it had been a close election, maybe it would make me feel better. Maybe it would just make me feel worse.

"Kiera, students don't get to see those results."

"Oh, but I already know I lost!"

"I'm sorry, but no."

"I won't tell anyone!"

He sighed. Mr. Skenson was a nice teacher, and liked to help the students out whenever

possible.

"Oh, alright."

He rifled through a file cabinet and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Hmmm, lets see here. Ah, Kiera Daze." He looked back up at me, and I saw some pity in his eyes. "Two votes."

No matter what I had expected, it hadn't been that. I thanked him and walked slowly to English. Two votes. Well, really only one, as I had voted for myself. But who had the other one come from? Lacie had been sick yesterday and today, and she hadn't been able to vote at all. No doubt some kid who had dozed off during the speeches and didn't care at all who won at all just checked my name randomly. That was a cheerful thought.

No sooner had I sat down in class when Mrs. Dellir dropped a some papers face down on my desk. It was the _Tale of Two Cities _test we had taken on Monday. With a feeling of foreboding deep in my stomach, I flipped it over.

37.

I had never gotten that bad a grade before. I glanced over at Ivy, who was smiling as she looked over her test. I could clearly see a 95 on the top page.

The whole week had been like this, with everything going wrong. It was Friday, and I had never longed for the weekend more. The only things that had gone well during the last five days were the evenings. I went over to the Cullen's every night to do my homework. Edward and Jasper were both very knowledgeable and I found myself completing my homework in half the usual time. After, Edward would take me to the meadow, where we would talk for hours. That made up for all the nastiness I was facing at school.

My secret, however, was now out. On Monday night I had called Lacie as I had promised and told her everything. I hadn't realized my longing to tell someone. It had actually felt better, lifting the weight off my chest.

"Edward Cullen, the one from Twilight?"

"Yes."

"But isn't it a fictional book?"

"It's supposed to be, but it's based on real stuff. I swear!"

After a very long conversation, I had convinced her. had said she wouldn't tell a soul, and I fervently trusted her. If anyone could keep a secret, Lacie could.

Also on my mind was Dylan's return. He had not been at school all week, and still none of his friends had heard anything from him. I told my mom that I had seen him and that he was fine. That calmed her down a bit. Why scare her with Dylan's disappearance?

A week after he had left, on Saturday afternoon, the whole house was extremely tense. My father was preparing himself to be very angry at his son when he arrived. My mother was walking from room to room, trying to decide if she should be more excited or upset. I was sitting in my room, feeling very nervous indeed. Part of me was worried that he wouldn't come back at all and part of me was in terror of what his condition would be if he did.

One thing was for sure, if Dylan did not arrive soon, then something was wrong. His note had said he would return in a week, and even if he was annoying and irresponsible in most of his actions, he was always on time.

As if in response to my thoughts, the doorbell rang,

My heart squirming, I stood up and listened. The door opened and I heard my mother saying, "Oh, Dylan! You scared us so much!"

I ran out of my room and down the stairs. In the entryway, I saw my parents both talking to someone with his back toward me. An immense wave of emotion suddenly came over me and I ran forward and gave him a big hug.

He turned around, and I suddenly bounded backwards.

This man, standing in the entryway, was not Dylan. He was not anyone I knew.

"Kiera?" he said uncertainly.

I stared at him. As I looked closer, I could see some resemblance of my brother in this stranger's face. His nose was the same shape, and he that slightly mocking smile on that I knew so well, as if he knew something that he was sure would make me mad. No, it was Dylan, all right, but he was not the same.

As I followed him up the stairs, carrying his bag, I noticed that he was much taller, possibly around six and a half feet now. He was also carrying himself differently, standing up straighter and moving with more confidence.

When we entered his room, he sat down on the bed and gestured for me to follow suit. I looked up into his changed face, for it was changed immensely. It was very smooth now and much paler, with redder lips. As he smiled again, I could see his front teeth were slightly pointer than they had been before. And his eyes, they were a light yellow. Such a change from old blue ones.

"Dylan," I said, hardly daring to breath. "What's happened to you?"

I knew before he said it. I had known the moment he had turned around downstairs in the hallway. Somehow, though not consciously. I had known and dreaded it the moment I heard about his leaving a week ago.

"I'm a vampire."


	12. The New Vampire

A/N I'm back! Yay! So here's another chapter for you all to enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Stephanie Meyer's rights to _Twlight _and _New Moon. _However, Kiera, Dylan, Lacie, and Ivy are all my creation!

"What?"

I stared at him, and his yellow eyes, so unlike him, stared back.

"Kiera, don't pretend to disbelieve, I know you understand."

"No, I haven't any idea what's happened!" I said quite truthfully. Yes, I could see plain as plain he had been changed, but as to how that event had come to pass, I knew just as much as my ignorant parents.

He shot me one of his old looks, silently laughing at my stupidity.

"Can you think of no one who could have done this to me?"

Suddenly, realization pulsed through me as if it had been injected into my skin.

"Victoria," I breathed.

Dylan nodded.

I was dying to know the story that was hidden behind his new, perfect face, and those strange, unfamiliar eyes.

"Ah, not to worry, Kiera, I'll tell you everything."

I gasped. "You can read my mind?"

"No, I just know you very well." He laughed.

I just looked at him, waiting.

"First of all, why on earth didn't you tell me about the Cullen's?"

After getting over the initial shock of that name coming out of his mouth, I struggled to form the words. "Well, you wouldn't have believed-"

"Nonsense! Of course I would have!"

"No! Before, whenever I even mentioned vampires you would start to yelling about how I was too obsessed with these fantasy characters and that it was high time I was brought back to the real world!"

"Yes," he retorted, "but you never mentioned a word about real vampires running all over Daffaden."

I decided it was best not to argue back, but I glared at him instead. He ignored me.

"And not only that, but you visited their house frequently. 'Oh, Dylan,'" he mimicked me "'Take me to my friend's house,' 'Follow that car, Dylan,' 'Turn into that unknown and privately owned driveway, and lets see what terrible monsters lay on the other side, ready to tear us apart and eat us for dinner!'"

"Dylan!" I screamed over his steadily rising voice. "Shut up! Edward would never-"

"No, Kiera! For once in your life, you shut up!"

I looked up at his towering figure, and slid off the bed. I cowered on the ground, his voice booming over me.

"You always think you know best, that you're doing the right thing, but, strange although it might seem, I know more about this situation then you do!"

Although it was entirely against what I should have done, my instinct told me to argue back, as I had done for my whole life.

"What are you talking about?" I yelled up at him "You've never read _Twilight_! You've never read _New_–"

"Do you really think this is about books? It has nothing to do with them!"

"They have everything to do with it!"

Dylan reached up into his eyes and took out what I immediately recognized as strangely tinted contacts. One glance up into his face showed me why he had been wearing them. His eyes, glowing red, seemed to shoot sparks at me. I fell quiet immediately. When he spoke it was in a low, dangerous voice.

"The books tell the story of the past. And the past is done with. The story of the Cullens goes beyond the pages of fantasy novels, as you have seen. And with them comes more stories, that we have someone been drawn into, Kiera. These stories no longer belong in books. This is reality."

He sank down on his bed. I, however, remained curled up on the ground, watching those red eyes, more terror in my heart than I had ever experienced.

We stared at each other in silence for what must have been several minutes. Finally, Dylan spoke.

"I was under the impression that you wanted to what happened to me."

I broke my gaze and stared at the ground, not sure I really wanted to hear anymore.

"Yes, it was Victoria. She found me about a week ago. I was just walking on the side of the road and she ran out of the woods and grabbed me. Of course, I was more surprised than scared when I first saw her. But after she told me that she would kill mom and dad if I didn't do what she said and then leaped out and killed a man passing by to show she was serious, I decided to do whatever she wanted.

"First she made me write the letter, giving a false explanation as to where I had gone. This at least seemed promising, that maybe I would return. She then took me deep into the mountains. I was confused, and very frightened. That night she bit me and left."

"She left? She just abandoned you there?" I had kept silent so far, but this appalling bit had surprised me into speech.

Dylan, however, seemed not to mind. He gave a wry smile and continued.

"It was too much of a temptation for her. Once she bit me, she could hardly tear herself away from my blood. It's difficult, you see, for vampires to create other creatures like themselves. Great self-restraint is needed. In order to complete the task, she needed to flee.

"Oh Kiera, it was agony. It was beyond anything any human has ever experienced. I was driven mad by it. No wonder Victoria had taken me so far away from any towns, for my continual screams would have attracted multitudes. I screamed until no more voice could come my throat. I thrashed around on the ground for those three days, crazy with pain, hunger, thirst, and fear. Yes, that fear was what caused the most damage to me. Victoria had failed to mention what was going to happen to me. I had no idea what I was becoming.

"I tried to kill myself, I was willing to do anything to get the pain to stop. However, when this desire came to me, I couldn't do it, I was already too much of a vampire. But I hurt my self, oh yes. My skin had not yet become rock hard, and continual attempts at death only added more to my pain.

"The last day or so of my transformation is not in my memory. I believe I was unconscious, or maybe the pain was so great it rendered me unable to think. Anyway, what I do remember is opening my eyes, and seeing Victoria, standing there.

"All the pain had gone. In its place was a great sense of power and a sharper sense of all my surroundings. Victoria taught me everything about vampires. Our history, our abilities, and my task."

Here he paused, thinking.

I was in complete shock. It was strange enough hearing Dylan refer to the vampires as "us" but just the though of him and Victoria sitting in some forest, talking about the creature he had become was quite frightening all by itself.

Dylan seemed to be working out the best way to say something. I prompted him.

"And what was your task?"

"_Is _my task. I still have it." He sighed, as if resigning himself to the fact that he was going to have to say whatever he so did not want to. "I have to kill you."

And suddenly a the full impact of what was happening hit me. I was sitting in a room with a vampire. A new vampire, who had bright, bloody eyes, and as Edward had explained about these vampires, and equally bright and bloody desire. If the Cullens had spent decades working up their defenses against their longing, there was no way this young vampire could hold himself back from going on a frenzied killing rampage.

I scrambled off the floor and made for the door. Before I had even reached for the doorknob, Dylan had slid between myself and the door.

"Kiera-" he started, but I wasn't going to let him just murder me right there. I wheeled around and sped toward the other side of the room.

As I was running past, I stubbed my toe on a chair. Gasping in pain, I crashed sideways into a lamp and fell forward. My head hit the wall and I slid down it into a corner, sobbing. Stars burst in front of my eyes as my head throbbed. My vision was slightly blurry as I watched Dylan scamper lightly over the chair and leap gracefully, landing in front of me.

I cried out and in desperation tried to get up, but I was just too dizzy.

"Kiera-"

I screamed and yelled as loud as I could.

"No Kiera, hush-"

"HELP! SOMEBODY HELP!"

"Kiera!"

"I'M BEING ATTACKED! HELLLLLP!"

"You don't really want someone up here, do you?"

I fell silent at once. If my mom or dad came up here, no doubt Dylan would turn on them and kill them as well.

"As it is," Dylan said quite calmly "They've gone out for dinner or something like that. So they wouldn't have heard you anyway, but the neighbors-"

"Oh, for God's sake, Dylan! Just do it!"

"Do what?"

"Kill me!" I yelled. I couldn't stand a second more of it, just sitting here, knowing he was going to do it sooner or later.

"Now, why would I want to kill you?"

I stared at him.

"Because Victoria told you to." I reminded him.

And, not helped my bewilderment at all, Dylan smiled and chuckled a bit.

"Oh, Kiera! You didn't actually think I'd do what she said, do you?"

"Yeah, I did." I said truthfully "And I still do!"

He actually gave a full laugh now, his voice echoing slightly in his large room.

"No, no, no! You see, Victoria made a huge mistake. She thought, as I was a new vampire, that putting me back in a house with you would make certain your death, no problem! But she forgot something very important. Well, not forgot, as she didn't know about it or understand it in the first place. You're my sister."

I looked up at him, sure to see a playful smile dancing on his lips and a taunt that I looked like I believed him ready to spring forth. I was not, however, prepared for his happy, yet completely serious face looking back.

"So?"

He didn't answer, merely looked meaningfully at me, willing me to understand something he could not put into words.

Something shot up through me, something so normal yet so strange in this situation. It was love. Not the sort of love that you feel toward your crush or your dog or your best friend. It was love that's meant only for your sibling. And as I let the feeling spread to every inch of my body, I realized that this person standing in front of me was not just my driver or someone who always hogged the computer and the TV; he was my brother.

"Oh Dylan!"

Emotion welling up inside me, I threw myself into him.

With a yelp of surprise he jumped back, causing me to belly flop onto the carpet.

"Sorry, Kiera." He said sheepishly as I struggled back into a more dignified position, "I just don't think I can handle physical contact right now. It might be too much for me."

"But I thought you just said you couldn't hurt me?"

"Well, I think you're misunderstanding me. It's not like there's some sort of magical protection on you and that I can't get to you because of it. Kiera, there's nothing stopping me from killing you right now expect, my conscience, I guess. I could never kill you or any of my family because I know it's not right. Just don't encourage me, you know."

I nodded. The crazy emotion that had taken hold of me was settling down now, and I felt rather stupid. Nevertheless, I knew I would never forget that understanding of Dylan as my brother that had hit me so suddenly.

"Dyl?"

"Hmm?"

"Why did Victoria want you to kill me?'

"Well, she's still after Edward. James had taught her a few tricks and she was able to track the Cullens down, even though this place is loaded with darkstone. As you know, her initial target was Bella, but she gave up finding her in New York. So she came here and who does she see him hanging out with all the time? You."

"But Edward doesn't-"

"You two are very close. She's noticed that. So you're her new target."

"Oh goody," I groaned and leaned back against the wall. "Fantastic, I now have vicious vampire on my tail. Are you going to be my guardian or something?"

"No, I'm staying right here. I'm going to feign illness, I guess. I can't go to school, that's just too much for me. Oh, and I'm grounded for a few months."

"How come?"

"Because I just left like that. And because of the plastic surgery."

"_Plastic surgery_?"

He pointed at his new, beautiful face.

"I had to come with something, didn't I?"

We both laughed, but then his voice changed to an extremely serious tone.

"Now, I want you to listen to me very carefully. Don't go to see Edward any more. It's too dangerous for you to be off on your own with him, with anyone for that matter. Tell him at school about Victoria. He probably hasn't sensed her because of the darkstone. And from the looks of things, Alice hasn't had any visions of her either."

I listened, and a weight seemed to drop into my stomach.

"Kiera, I don't want you seeing him anymore. It's way to much of a risk."

"You think I'm-"

"No, I don't think you're weak or irresponsible, but you wouldn't stand a chance against Victoria, and I don't think Edward would either."

I nodded, knowing perfectly well that I was going to visit Edward plenty more times, no matter how many crazy vampires were trying to murder me.

A/N Sorry for the cheesy stuff, I don't think we'll have any more of that in this story, but I had to put a bit of fuzz in, right? Thanks for reading and please review!!!!

-Chocolate13


	13. Recklessness

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Twilight or New Moon. They belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm back with another chapter. Just to make things easier, I'm going to continue this story as if Eclipse hadn't come out yet. That means no spoilers! So, read away…

I spent most of the weekend in Dylan's room, trying to come up with a way for him to miss school. The problem was, if he pretended to be sick and did not get better, only so much time could go by before my mom took him to a doctor. And one thing was for sure, this newborn vampire could not go to a hospital.

"Are you positive you can't go to school?" I asked for the hundredth time, exasperated beyond belief and bored of sitting inside.

He rolled his eyes. "Not unless you want half the school to be eaten by Tuesday."

We fell into silence again, both lost in thought. Suddenly Dylan's eyes flashed behind his tinted contacts.

"Hey, Kiera, I got an idea!"

"Ok, shoot."

"That vampire…Edward's father-"

"Carlisle?"

"Yeah, him. He's a doctor, right?"

"Mmmhmm."

"So, he could come take a look at me! Then he could tell mom all kinds of stuff, I wouldn't have to go to the hospital and I, on the doctor's orders, could stay at home, safe and sound."

"Carlisle isn't here. Edward said he'll be coming in a few weeks."

"We can move fast if we need to, and this is an emergency."

"Ok, I'll ask him."

"No, I will."

I glared at him. He was still against me seeing Edward.

"I'm not letting you leave this house, young man. What if old Mrs. Trissly happens to be hobbling across the street?"

He pretended to think. "No, I don't think so. She wouldn't taste too good."

"That's not funny."

He stopped laughing and stared at me, actually thinking this time.

"Ok, here's an idea. We'll take the afternoon off. You're getting cranky and sitting in here talking for another five hours isn't going to help anyone. So, I'll pretend to be sick tomorrow and when it looks as if Mom is about to insist on me going to a doctor, we can talk some more."

"Good idea!" I called, already on my feet and out the door.

"But no seeing Edward!" I heard Dylan call as I ran down the steps.

I grabbed my jacket off the hook and dashed outside, relishing the cool, autumn air.

As I pulled out my bike and started to ride, I rearranged my thoughts, moving everything about Dylan and Victoria to the very back, where Edward would have to look very hard to find them. I didn't want to spend this afternoon talking about what I had just spent the last day discussing. What Edward didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

As I pulled up to the house, I found Edward and Alice sitting on the grass, talking in low, urgent voices. When they heard the crunch of gravel, they both looked up. Alice glared at me, gave a meaningful look at Edward, then danced away into the house.

Edward grinned and strolled up to me.

"Hey there," he said

"Hi," I said, breathless as usual, seeing him after any amount of time.

"I missed you last night."

"Really?"

"Yeah, Alice and I went to see a movie, but it was rubbish."

"What were you just talking about?"

"It's nothing. What do you want to do?"

I was still curious, but knew better then to keep pestering him.

"How about we go the meadow?"

He smiled his crooked smile, and my heart almost stopped.

"I was hoping you'd say that!"

And in one, swift movement, he scooped me up into his arms, placed me on his back, and was off.

No matter how many times I had done this, it was still amazing each time. He had taken me here every day this week.

As always, the journey was too short and we were stopping before I had really begun to fully enjoy the ride. He placed me down gently and flopped down next to me.

We spent hours there, just talking. I always found it so easy to talk to him, we were so similar. We talked about music, movies, and other things I might talk about with my friends at school. Edward told me stories from his long life, and I spoke some about when I was little.

It was dark by the time our voices ceased. We lay there, in the cool grass, staring up at the sky.

"What's your favorite constellation?" he asked

This strange question confused me. "I don't know. I can only really find the big dipper."

He laughed and then starting pointing them all out to me.

I wasn't really listening to what he was saying, more just the sound of his voice. I kept my eyes dutifully up, however, resisting the temptation to stare at his glowing body.

When he fell silent, I kept looking up at the stars.

"Well," I said after a few minutes, inspiration hitting me, "That one kind of looks like you."

He searched, trying to find it.

"It's right there," I pointed, but finally gave up when he still couldn't see it.

"Well, it looks like a really tall, perfect person. Like you."

He turned his head and smiled at me. "Perfect?"

I nodded. "Perfect."

Suddenly, I noticed that we were much closer together then usual tonight, only about a foot apart.

The impulse to just turn over and kiss him came again to my mind, stronger than it had been before. Yet, this time, I couldn't think of any reason not to do it. Why did he keep taking me here? Why was he so far away from Bella? Why was he so close to _me_? Only one answer came to my mind. He had to love me, there was no other alternative.

With a very reckless and excited emotion pounding through my veins, my heart sped up to a thousand times its normal speed. And before Edward could do anything, I had rolled over and was on him.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed myself closer to him, my lips finding his in less then a second.

It was bliss, the best I'd ever felt in my whole life. But, something was wrong, he wasn't kissing me back. No, he was pushing away. Not gently in the slightest, he wrenched my hands from around him and grabbed my shoulders, thrusting me away from him.

He quickly got to his feet and glared down at me. But there was also something else in his eyes. Revulsion? Could that be fear?

He mumbled something that sounded like, "Alice was right." And then was off, running into the woods.

It took me a while to understand what had just happened. I didn't move, lying still in the grass, waiting for realization to hit me. When it did, I became overwhelmed and tears flowed steadily from my eyes. As a sob shook my body, I wondered if I would become like Bella in _New Moon_, a zombie. But, this was a different situation entirely. There wasn't a hole inside me where something was missing. You can't lose what you've never had.

"Edward!" I called into the night, hoping against hope that he was just standing behind the first layer of trees, about to step out and laugh at my foolishness.

"Silly Kiera," he would say, "Did you honestly expect me to leave you like that?"

But he had, he had left me. I stood up, trying to leave the misery on the ground as I stumbled into the forest after him. But it stuck to me, not wanting to let go.

I had begun to get to know the area surrounding the meadow relatively well by now, but everything looked different at this time of night. The moonlight broke through the canopy of trees every once in a while, illuminating strange objects that I had never identified as landmarks, and leaving everything else in darkness.

It was about an hour later when I stopped running, leaning against a tree and gasping for breath. I was tired, so tired. I was cut and bruised all over from my multiple trips and falls. I was hungry, I had skipped dinner and it must have been past midnight. I was beyond depressed…I was crazy with despair. And I was alone.

It hadn't struck me until that point how alone I truly was, standing in the depths of a strange forest in the middle of the night with no protection and no idea where I was.

Dylan was right, I shouldn't have gone to see Edward. But was this really Edward's fault? I was the one that had tried to kiss him, but he had seemed like he had wanted it. Why did he led me on and tricked me like that? Why had he got my hopes up so high?

Would he ever speak to me again? That is, if I ever got back. If it got to be tomorrow and I hadn't come back, would he go looking for me? Would he care?

With another cry of grief, I tried moving forward again, only to trip a second later on a fallen branch, it's dark bark invisible against the black ground. I fell hard, landing on several sharp rocks.

I smelled blood; both my hands-thrown out to soften the fall-were cut badly, and, feeling something warm trickle down my cheek, I figured something must have happened to my face as well. My jeans had been ripped, and my shirt was filthy.

"Edward!" I groaned, softly this time, unable to make a sound loader than a whisper.

How stupid I had been! Now I was going to die, by myself in the middle of the woods. And yet, I almost welcomed death. If I couldn't have Edward, was there any point in living?

I lay face down in the ground, the rocks pressing painfully into my sides. After a while, I didn't even feel them any more. I was slipping away, sliding away from my crumpled, hurt body into nothingness. All emotion evaporated into the air, leaving me with nothing to hold onto. I didn't know where I was or what was happening. I didn't even know my own name.

Suddenly, a hand grasped my shoulder, and I was brought sharply back to myself. All at once, I felt pain all over; my hands, my face, my stomach. And all the feelings were back too, the loneliness, fear and grief.

Through a daze of pain, both mental and physical, I vaguely sensed someone picking me up in strong arms and running off with me bouncing in their arms.

For a moment, I felt a twinge of hope, but my nose did not smell what it wanted to. Instead, a twisted, disgusting smell of dirt, blood and something like vomit entered my nostrils.

Everything went black, but before I lost it completely I heard a high, cold laugh above me.

Then I disappeared into the darkness devouring my head, and drifted straight to the nightmares that waited, skulking in the blackness to drive me to madness.


	14. My Task

Disclaimer: All rights to_ Twilight, New Moon,_ and _Eclipse_ belong to Stephenie Meyers!

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm back! I'm so sorry for the long delay, I've been itching to sit down and write for weeks. This chapter not quite as long as some of my others, but hopefully I'll be posting more soon. Thanks so much for your patience and for all the wonderful feedback. Please continue to review and enjoy this chapter!

Dark images were racing through my head. Girls at school whispering to each other as I walked past…the announcement on the wall shouting to the world that Robert Nackles had won student council elections…Dylan with his bright red eyes…the look of hatred always present on Alice's face when she glanced my way… Edward running off into the forest, leaving me alone…

I felt like Bella, held beneath water by a strong tide, not able to pull my head above the surface so I could breath. And yet, even as I struggled to get away from the nightmares, the thought entered my head of just staying down here. I might die of lack of oxygen, but did I really want to go back to the world where I had been rejected by everyone? Ivy was one thing, but loosing Edward to the cold night was something entirely different. He had taken my heart with him as he sprinted away. Would I even be able to survive if I swam up to the surface? No, it would just be better to stay down and die here, without any more pain…

I might well have died, for I usually can accomplish things if I put my mind to it. If only I had had a few minutes more to make myself certain.

However, my captor had no intention of having me die. Well, not yet anyway.

Suddenly, something wrenched me from beneath the churning waves and deposited me on the hard, rocky shore, gasping for breath.

And I was gasping; tears running down my face. I didn't want to open my eyes; I didn't want to see a world in which Edward was no longer by my side.

I groaned and tried to go back under, but the waves wouldn't take me. I was already too dry.

"Edward!" I chocked

A cold laugh answered this call. I flinched, having completely forgotten that someone else was here.

My eyes flew open and with a jolt of shock I saw the figure standing above me, the moon casting it's glow down from an opening in the trees.

Victoria was just as I had imagined her. Tall, with flaming red hair streaming out from her beautiful face; hair that clashed horribly with her blood red eyes. The worst part, however, was not the stench that emanated from her or the blood that was trickling down from her mouth. It was the smile that stretched her lips into a horrible grin.

More tears flowed down my cheeks, but I didn't cry out this time. I didn't make any sound at all.

"Well, well, well," She said, her dark, high voice echoing in the small clearing. "It's little Kiera. All alone in the woods."

I didn't even wonder how she knew my name. I was too frightened to wonder at anything.

"Where's Edward? Oh, he's not here is he? No, there's no one here to save you."

Why me? What did I ever do to you? The thoughts pounded through my head, shouting. But my lips wouldn't move. Nothing would move.

"Oh, are you scared, Kiera? Is the tiny baby crying? Do you want your mommy?"

She was clearly waiting for a response but I had none to give her. I just stared, frozen.

Victoria reached down and grabbed me by the neck. She tugged me off the ground and threw me across the glen.

I crashed into a tree and landed hard on the ground once more. My leg made a horrible crunching sound and white hot plain coursed up into my body.

Once again, I heard that awful laugh and saw Victoria strolling over to where I lay.

"Having fun, Kiera? Are you enjoying yourself?"

She sat down next to me, laughing and laughing.

I just lay there, drawing in deep breaths. Pain was still shooting up from my leg, and I was cut and scratched all over.

"Look at me."

I could not disobey this command. My eyes locked with hers and I could not look away.

"I admit it. I made a mistake."

This, of all things, was not what I was expecting her to say. I searched her eyes, trying to see what she meant.

"With your brother. Dylan."

She spat his name out, and her eyes blazed with anger.

"That loving fool. He could not follow my orders. He would not do the simple task I assigned him. Kill Kiera. Kill the stupid little human that lives in his own house! And yet, maybe I should have guessed that he would not be able to do it. That he actually loved you. I had been watching, I saw the way you two bickered. I thought he would kill you gladly. Clearly, there are some things that I have yet to understand.

My voice finally returned to me.

"So you're going to kill me now." I said it so calmly. Well, after all, I had accepted my death once already this evening.

"I'm not going to kill you, Kiera."

This surprised me, but the surprise was nothing to the wave of revulsion that rolled over me. She had been doing this for _fun_. She got _amusement_ out of my pain.

"If you do what I want, then you'll be safe and sound."

"What do you want?" My voice cracked, and I wiped a tear from my cheek. I was so frightened.

"Well, as you know. Edward Cullen annoys me greatly. For too long have I tried to get at Isabella Swan and failed. For too long have I planned out ways to kill you, human. So, I've changed my target. Even though I have you in the palm of my hand. Killing his friends doesn't matter to me anymore. I want to kill him."

"No!" I shouted, and tried to get to my feet. However, my broken leg collapsed underneath me and I tumbled back down.

Victoria laughed again. "Humans are so fragile. Just listen, Kiera. This murder has to be special. It can't just be me popping out of the bushes and slaughtering him. There has to be more to it. I have to break his heart him before I break him."

She smiled at me again. A smile so full of evil that every part of me urged me to run as fast and as far as I could. However, all I could do was keep staring into those red eyes.

"So, what do you want me to do?"

"What do you think? You must bring him to me."

I stared at her, shocked.

"But-"

"Get him the to your meadow at midnight next Saturday evening. I'll be waiting. And before I give the fatal blow, I'll turn him around and tell him of your betrayal. Get it?"

"No, I don't get it!" I shouted at her, unable to move. "I love Edward! I'm not going to lead him to his death!'

Victoria stood up, brushing some dirt off her clothes. "My dear girl, do you honestly think I'm going to let you live if you don't show up on Saturday? It's your life or Edward's, take your pick."


	15. Decision

Disclaimer: The rights to _Twilight, New Moon,_ and_ Eclipse _belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N-Hey everyone! I'm back! I'm afraid this is what it is going to be like for a while. I have had no time for any writing for weeks, and my schedule doesn't get any less busy at all in the near future. So you'll have to put up with these spaced out chapters until I can really get down to constant writing again. But I promise you one thing, I will finish this story. Whatever happens, I will finish it.

My thoughts were in turmoil, tossing me from one subject to another. I was so tired, so confused, so scared, and so unable to sort anything out. The darkness pressed against my closed eyelids, keeping me captive within my own mind.

"I thought I told you never to go out with him again,"

The voice, dripping with anger, echoed slightly and I shivered. But I wasn't afraid of the speaker. I knew who it was.

My eyes fluttered open and I sat up. Dylan was sitting in a dark corner, his red eyes glowing and focused on me. I wished he was wearing his contacts.

"You're not the boss of me, Dylan. I can make my own decisions."

"No you can't! You could have been killed tonight!"

I didn't ask how he knew what had happened. The knowledge of a vampire could never be underestimated.

"Well, that wasn't Edward's fault!"

"Of course it was! How else would you be left alone in the middle of a forest?"

"If he knew Victoria was lurking behind the trees, I'm positive he wouldn't have left me there!"

"He shouldn't have done it anyway! He knows of darkstone, he knows of his dulled senses!"

"The reason the Cullens came here was to keep her from following them. They don't believe its possible for her to find them. Edward would never have thought there was danger in leaving me there!"

"Then he has no common sense!"

"He's a vampire, his sense is different then a human's."

"I wouldn't have abandoned you!"

"Well, you're my brother!"

He stared at me, the anger abating slowly as I knew it would. His head drooped and the look he gave me was full of pain.

"Do you have any idea how scared I was last night, Kiera? How worried I was when you didn't show up? You're so lucky Mom and Dad are out, because they would have gone crazy. I waited for hours, itching to go and find you. A while ago I came up here for a final check, and there you were."

"How did I get here?" I asked, suddenly realizing I had no memory of leaving the forest.

"You must have fainted or something and she carried you home."

"Oh,"

I didn't know quite what else to say. Dylan's feelings were blatant in a way they had never been before. Maybe it was because he was a new vampire or perhaps he wanted me to see how he felt.

"What did she tell you?"

I knew I had to answer his question truthfully. I wanted to. Dylan was the one person who I could talk to and who would hopefully understand.

I told him everything that had happened with Victoria. The memory was still vivid, and I remembered all the details.

"And I'm so scared, Dyl. I don't want to die." I finished.

Dylan, who had stayed silent throughout my tale, smiled for the first time that evening.

"Kiera, you are way too heroic for your own good. You only have one option. You will lead Edward to the clearing next Saturday."

I stared at him in horror.

"I can't be the cause for his death!"

"You have to be!"

"I don't! Victoria gave me a choice!"

"You are not to kill yourself for some good for nothing vampire!"

"I love him!"

"How? How can you love someone that abandoned you in the middle of a forest with nothing but Victoria for company?"

"I don't know! Can anyone explain love?"

"Kiera, you're fourteen. Fourteen-year-olds don't fall in love!"

"Yes they do! It may not be the norm, but I am in love with Edward Cullen!"

"So you would die for him? He shouldn't even exist. He should have died a hundred years ago!"

His word echoed ones that Jacob had once spoken in the books and I shrank back, uncertain.

"I don't care about all that!"

"You will not sacrifice yourself for him. I thought I had lost you tonight, Kiera. It was agony. I'm not ever going to let that happen again."

My reply dissolved on my tongue. I could not argue with this sentimental creature. Also, inside, I agreed with him. No matter how much of a hero I pretended to be, I didn't want to die. Like Dylan said, Edward has lived far longer than he should have lived. And he did leave me all alone in the forest.

But what of Bella? What of her love? Well, there are other fish in the sea. What of his family? They would get over it. He never did much to help them anyway. What if they went after me for revenge? I had Dylan by my side. And what of my love?

I couldn't answer that.

"So," Dylan's voice was all business now, knowing he had won. "Edward must never know that you have had any contact with Victoria. On the same note, Alice must never be able to foresee what you are planning to do."

I decided not to talk and let him do everything. I also tried not to think. I didn't want to doubt what we were doing. I didn't want to see my own hesitation.

"I got this just as a safety precaution, but it this is key to our success." Dylan pulled small chunk of stone out of his pocket. It was chipped, rugged, and black as night.

"Darkstone," He said in response to my questioning look. "I was hunting in the mountains yesterday and I stumbled into a mine. Miners had tossed about a ton of darkstone into a bin, thinking it was useless. I took a few pieces."

I reached out and took the rock from him. It was heavy and its surface had a slight resistance, as if it didn't want to be touched.

"No one noticed you, right?" I glanced up to find his face downcast.

"I'm not quite as stealthy as some of the older vampires. I took too many pieces, and one slipped from my fingers. I tried diving to catch it but in the process I dropped my entire armload."

"Nice."

There wasn't any laughter in his eyes as he continued. "Everyone in the tunnel heard me. They thought I was stealing some of the good stuff they had found, and they weren't happy. One guy ran at me with his pick ax. I bit him in self defense, but the blood tasted so good…"

He trailed off, staring at the floor.

"Are any of them still alive?" I whispered, and then shivered when he shook his head.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. It was hard to believe that the person sitting so close had just murdered a mine full of people.

"So the plan," I prompted him, wanting the misery on his face to disappear. "What's the darkstone for?"

"Rub it on your face, neck, and arms. It will spread from there. You smell strongly of Victoria, and this will cover it all up. It will also hide my smell, which is easily detectable otherwise. Edward can't know you've been associating with any other vampires. Also, Alice won't be able to see any future involving you when you're covered with darkstone."

"Really? Pretty powerful stuff."

"You can say that again."

"Will this protect my mind too?"

"Yes, but not well. Just in case, think of nothing but schoolwork when Edward is near. Do not for a moment let it dart to Victoria or myself."

"I don't think I'll be able to do that."

"Try your best."

"So what should I do other than put on the darkstone?"

"Act normally. I know it will be difficult, but Edward must never suspect something is wrong. Do not tell anyone about this plan. With any luck this matter will be settled by next Saturday night."

He spoke as if killing Edward was a simple thing that had better be done as fast as possible. Didn't he realize that my heart would fall apart the moment Edward stopped breathing?

"I'm scared, Dyl. " That was the only way I could put my feelings into words.

"Don't be. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise." His voice was so reassuring I couldn't help but believe it. "Just look at what happened tonight. You're a bit shaken but otherwise ok."

"Yeah, but-" I suddenly remembered the snapping sound my leg had made when Victoria had thrown me across the grove and the pain that had sprang up from it.

"My leg! I think I broke it!" It took me a minute, through my daze of fear, to realize that it wasn't hurting anymore. In fact, it felt good as new.

"It was broken." Dylan said, standing up and strolling to the door. "But not anymore."

"How-"

"I'm a healer."

"A what?"

"A healer. You know, Edward can read minds and Alice can see into the future. I can heal."

Despite all my muddled feelings, I couldn't help but give a little laugh at this.

"Ironic, isn't it? A monster that has the power to heal his victims. Maybe that's why I have that ability. Because I'm the only vampire that would ever have reason for it."

It was cute in a messed up sort of way. And I grinned at this strange creature that stood across the room from me.

"So you can heal yourself?"

"I'm a vampire, Kiera. I don't think I'll need to heal too much. But if I was attacked by another vampire, no, I don't believe I would be able to heal."

"Oh. That's annoying."

"It is. Good night, Kiera."

"Night, Dyl. Thanks for everything."

I lay back down and closed my eyes.

Edward…Edward…Edward…Edward…

All I could think of was that perfect person. That angelic blessing that I had been given. I had messed up. He had left. Had there ever been something between us? Had I just been imagining things? I loved Edward, I was sure about that. Yet, why was I leading him to his death?

I knew that I would not be able to let myself die instead. I was just too fearful and too selfish. I hated myself and hoped Victoria would just pop up and kill me now before I could do the thing that I dreaded.

"Oh, Edward!" I whispered into the darkness, "I love you! I'm so sorry!"

Perhaps Dylan heard me, but he didn't come back in. No one was there to comfort me. I was alone in my misery. It was just me and the fact that Edward was going to die.

And it would be my fault.

-Chocolate13


	16. Back at School

"Oops

Disclaimer: All rights to _Twilight_, _New Moon_, and _Eclipse_ belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N: So I'm back. It's been what - three months? Four months? I'm really sorry about the wait. Here's a nice long chapter for you and I should hopefully have another out within the next few weeks. Just remember, I promise I will finish this story, whatever happens. Enjoy!

"Oops. Sorry."

That was the third time I had started to tip the iodine into the beaker. This time, however, I had actually poured the whole container.

"That's alright. We're just going to have to get some more ethanol." Said my lab partner, surprisingly patient.

It was just my luck to have a lab that Monday. Could there be a day when my mind was furthest from school? It kept straying to the meadow, where I would be in less than a week.

I hadn't seen Edward since Saturday night. Dylan had driven me to school this morning. Totally against my wishes, he was back in classes. It was truly amazing how protective he had become.

"It's not safe. What if someone falls or something and they start to bleed? You'll go on a rampage! You'll kill everyone in the room! Remember what happened at the mine?" I had warned him as he parked his car.

"I'm not afraid about their safety. It's your well-being I'm worried about."

"What's going to hurt me? Edward?"

"I don't trust him. And I don't trust Victoria either. She could decide she wants to finished Edward off without your help and murder you the minute she gets the chance!"

This morbid thought had silenced me. However, I was still waiting for the lockdown bell to go off, announcing the presence of a harmful person. As if hiding under desks and a locked door could stop a vampire.

"Kiera?"

My lab partner was looking at me, one eyebrow raised. I must have been zoning out again. I couldn't remember his name, even though we had worked together for every lab this year.

"Got the new ethanol?"

"Yes. And remember, you don't need to put in the iodine yet. That comes at the very end."

He was being incredibly patient. If it were me, I would hit that annoyingly stupid and out of it girl as hard as possible.

I suddenly realized that he was doing all the work. I quickly straightened up and reached towards the nearest flask.

"Kiera, its fine." He was looking at me with concern. Riley. That was his name. "Just relax, ok? You look tired."

I slumped backwards and nodded glumly. "Very tired."

"Well I can handle this. All you need to do is watch so you can answer the questions."

"Thanks. Thanks a bunch."

Riley was an ordinary-looking boy. He was a medium height, with light brown hair and milk chocolate eyes. He might be called cute, but compared to the perfect creature that occupied my thoughts, he was nothing but a dull boy who was good at science.

I kept silent and watched with as close attention as I could muster. Riley was fully concentrated, and seemed to know exactly what he was doing.

"There," he said after a while "That needs to sit for five minutes."

He sat down in the chair next to me and gave me a big grin. I gave him a half-hearted smile back.

We sat in an awkward silence for a few moments. Riley broke it.

"Are you sure your ok? You look kind of down."

I shrugged. "I'm just tired."

"Got a lot on your mind?"

"Yeah."

"I think we all do."

"No, but I really have a ton. You wouldn't understand."

I looked up to see a hurt expression on his face. I couldn't explain, and I wasn't about to try.

"You have a brother, right? A junior?"

"Yup."

"I have an older brother who's a junior too. His name's Theo. Have you met him?

I shook my head.

We lapsed into silence again. He was staring at the floor, but I glanced up. It was all very strange. He didn't seem like the sort of person that would talk very much. Actually, come to think of it, I didn't think I had ever seen him talking to anybody. It was clearly costing him a great effort to make this conversation. His pale cheeks were slightly flushed. I wondered if he was brave enough to say something else. I waited.

"So," he kept his face down "I never got a chance to tell you that…ummm….well…"

His face was getting steadily redder. "I…ummm….thought your speech was really good. The one for student council. I'm sorry you didn't win."

He still didn't look up, and I stared curiously at his bent head. He was a weird kid, no doubt about it.

"That's really nice. Thanks."

"No, don't mention it. I…ummm…just thought you really should have won."

Luckily, the bell rang at that moment. I quickly gathered up my books.

"I have a free after lunch today," Riley was saying, "I can come back then to finish up the lab."

"Hey, I have that period free too! I'll join you. " I was surprised to see that I was genuinely glad about it.

Riley gave me a big grin and left the room. I followed, my temporary happiness replaced by the dread of the upcoming weekend that seemed to be inescapable. The day, however, was far from being over.

While I was sitting by myself at lunch, Lacie joined me, her regular smile in place. She gave me a one armed hug.

"Hi, Kiera."

"Hola."

"How are you?"

There was concern in her eyes. I contemplated my answer for a moment.

"Good."

She didn't believe me. I knew I could tell her everything. Lacie was the most loyal person in the entire world. She was my best friend, and would understand. But something held me back. The same thing that had, at first, kept me from telling her about Edward. But now it was stronger.

No matter how nice Lacie was, this wasn't her business. Her world was made up of school and friends, not of vampires and betrayal. True, I had told her about the Cullens, but I would just leave it at that.

"Hey, you know I was wondering," she started excitedly "You've been hanging out with Edward so much, and that's fine. But do you want to do something with me?"

"Like a movie?"

"Yeah, just something fun. You know, hang out time."

"That'd be great. When are you free?"

She look slightly taken aback. "Oh, I'm good whenever. It's you that are so busy."

I shook my head. "No, I'm not. In fact, I have nothing to do at all this week!"

"Edward on a trip or something then?"

"Oh, come on! Do you honestly think I would only hang out with you if Edward wasn't there? Of course not! Edward is still here but that doesn't matter. What about tonight?"

"Tonight? That's great."

"I'll meet you at the movie theater at six, that's usually when they start."

She beamed at me.

With the promise of a movie later, my spirits were slightly raised. Then something happened that I would never have predicted.

Alice talked to me.

I was packing up at the end of the day when I heard her voice.

"Kiera."

When I turned around, there she was. I was so surprised that I dropped the books I was holding.

"Alice?"

"I just wanted to speak to you about something."

I was completely flabbergasted. Alice had never said one word to me, let alone ever give me a less-than-hateful glance. Yet there she was, asking for a talk, no hint of dislike at all.

"Sure."

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry for the way I've been acting. It's been really childish and stupid. I'm sorry."

She seemed sincere. I stared in disbelief.

"Don't worry about it." I said in a cracked voice.

"Ok, well I'll see you around." And with that she turned and danced away.

"Alice! Hey Alice!"

She turned back with a curious expression and pranced back toward me.

"Yes?"

"I have a question." I started cautiously "What did I do? To make you mad, I mean."

"I probably should tell you. The whole situation is so ridiculous. I was angry at you for something you hadn't done. Yet."

"I don't understand."

She lowered her voice to a whisper.

"The day Edward met you Kiera, I had a vision. It was of you and Edward in a meadow. And you, well, reached over and kissed him. I hated that. You have to see that I love Bella. She is like a sister to me and I would never want her to be unhappy. I couldn't stand the thought of Edward cheating-"

"But-"

"Just let me finish, Kiera. Even though he didn't bring on the actual kiss, he was still there in the meadow with you. That situation should never have happened. I saw you as the person that would end Bella and Edward's relationship, ruining both their lives forever. I told Edward what I had seen, I told him not to talk to you. But he wouldn't listen. He didn't believe you would do something like that. He really liked you, Kiera. He liked you a lot."

I couldn't believe this. But I still didn't understand.

"So why the change of heart? Why don't you hate me anymore?"

"This is going to sound really cheesy. But it's the truth nonetheless. I realized something few days ago. It was after a repeat of that same vision. I suddenly realized that this wasn't your fault. It's the type of situation where people say, 'Your only human', but that's not really the case. These are things that all of us feel, even vampires. At first I saw it as an attack on the people I love, but now I understand that it was an expression of affection. And there's nothing the matter with that. It's in your nature to love. And yes, it's rash and reckless in everything in between but that's all right. I shouldn't stop you or anyone else from loving. I'd be a fool to try."

Tears were welling up in my eyes. But there was something that I needed to say.

"Alice, it wasn't just in your visions. It happened. I did it. I kissed your brother."

And then the tears fell. They flowed down my face like a fast moving stream. She wouldn't be so quick to deem this a mere "expression of affection" when she realized that it has already happened.

To my surprise, I felt a cold hand on my head, turning it back towards her. Her face was tender.

"I know Kiera. You don't think Edward told me? I know that it happened, and I forgive you. Everyone's allowed to make mistakes."

"This was a really big mistake."

"But it's all fixed now."

My mouth fell open. "What?"

"Everything's fine."

"No its not! What about Edward? He'll never talk to me again!"

"Oh, on the contrary, he actually wants to talk to you today."

This couldn't be true. "Edward?"

"Yes, he wants to apologize for his behavior. Can you come over tonight?"

"Of course." As if I could answer differently.

She flashed a smile at me. "Great, see you then!"

I was in shock. Alice was speaking to me now? Edward wanted to talk to me again? This was amazing.

With his uncanny speed, Dylan was suddenly behind me. He lifted my backpack up and walked away without a word. I followed him, sensing his anger.

"You might as well tell me what's wrong." I said as I slid into his car.

"It's not like you don't know already, Kiera."

Alice. "Oh."

"It's bad enough that you actually talked to one of the Cullens. But then you actually accepted an invitation to their house? That's not happening."

"So you're eavesdropping now?"

"And it's a good thing I am. That was one hell of a conversation."

I searched for an explanation. "Well it only makes sense. You see, if I" my voice faltered "lead Edward to the meadow on Saturday, we need to be friends. I have to get close to him again."

Dylan nodded. "Ok, that's fine. You can be friends. But you're not going over to his house."

Part of me, the younger sister side, wanted to argue back and ask why not. But the other part, the one that had been threatened by an insane vampire and was alone in a car with a blood-sucking monster, kept silent. I decided to change the subject slightly.

"You know, it was weird. I was so scared that Alice would suddenly have a vision of me leading Edward to the meadow. Even though I have the darkstone, I was sure that it would happen."

"It's a strong substance. She won't be seeing any visions about you while you're coated with it."

We had pulled up in front of our house. Dylan was now almost as fast a driver as Edward.

There was something else that had been gnawing at my thoughts all day.

"But I was wondering, if Edward tries to read my mind, and he can't, he'll definitely suspect something."

Dylan seemed to consider this a problem. He scratched his head, thinking.

"I'm not sure. Maybe he'll only be able to see the thoughts you want him to."

"That makes sense."

In the blink of an eye, Dylan was out of the car and in the house. I sat still, thinking.

"This is just awful." I murmured to myself.

How unlucky am I? Why do I have to be the one whose brother is turned into a vampire? Why do I have to be the one who leads Edward to his death? Alice has finally made up with me. What will she think once she's found out what I've done. Will she kill me? Probably.

"It's not fair!" I shouted to the empty car. "I did nothing to deserve this!"

But as the tears began to come again, I realized something. I got to meet Edward Cullen. How many girls could say that? I talked with the man of my dreams and went with him to a beautiful meadow. That was enough to fulfill my life forever.

So I've been the happiest I ever been because Edward came. And because we met, he would die. I would be the one responsible for his death. So really, my contentment had been in exchange for Edward's life.

But then again, this wasn't really my choice. Edward had come here of his own accord.

No, this was my choice. That's exactly what it was. I chose to lead him to his death.

And was that all right? Had my happiness been a fair trade for his life?

I hated myself for being so selfish. I couldn't lie, the truthful answer was yes.

-Chocolate13


	17. A Work in Progress

It was very hard to concentrate on homework that night

Disclaimer: All rights to Twilight, New Moon, and Eclispe belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N: Hey, everyone! How amazing is this! Another chapter just two weeks after the last one! This may just be a record. It's not too long but hopefully will sustain you until the next one. My schedule is getting pretty busy again but I'll post as soon as possible. I hope you are all having a great year!

It was very hard to concentrate on homework that night. I strummed my fingers on my notebook as Dylan paced behind me.

"I don't think you two should go to the meadow before Saturday. Don't even bring the subject up. You don't want to seem too eager, you know? But once your relationship is reasonably patched up you can say causually, 'Edward, why don't we go to the meadow tonight?'"

"And what if he says no?"

"I haven't worked that part out yet."

"Dyl, can you please stop walking back and forth like that? I'm trying to concentrate."

He rolled his eyes. "We are planning the murder of a vampire and you're trying to do _homework_?"

"For Riley, more than anyone else."

"Who is that?"

"My science partner at school. I'm doing half of the written lab and he's doing the other half."

"Kiera, why do you care?"

"Well, he's been very nice to me. He even came back during a free today to help me finish the lab."

"Then just work a little and get yourself a C. Collages take a few of those."

"No, you don't understand. He's probably working his very hardest. I can't let him down."

Dylan rolled his eyes and walked out of the room.

I turned back to my notebook and tried to remember where I had left off.

Suddenly the doorbell rang. I tumbled out of my chair in shock. Why was I so jumpy these days? Soft but carrying voices drifted up from downstairs.

"What are you doing here?"

"Ah, Dylan. I was wondering if I could speak to Kiera?"

My heart nearly stopped at the sound of that voice again.

"She's just upstairs. Follow me."

I suddenly came back to my senses. I reached over and grabbed the darkstone, which had been lying next to the desk. I rubbed it all over myself and then stuffed it under a pile of dirty shirts.

Edward strolled in, and I felt a bit faint. In the few days that I hadn't seen him, I had forgotten the extremity of his sheer perfection.

Dylan was behind him, and gave me a meaningful glance before leaving.

"Kiera, what are you doing down there?" Edward laughed, and the tension was broken at once.

"I fell off the chair when I heard the doorbell."

"Silly Kiera," he chuckled and then reached out a hand to help me up.

I took it gladly, enjoying the coldness of his fingers. Perhaps we really could pick up our friendship where we had left off.

"May I sit down?"

He gestured toward the chair by the desk that I had just been occupying.

"Sure." I went over and sat on the bed across the room from him.

"I was wondering if you were alright. Alice told me that you had agreed to come over today, and I got worried when you didn't show up."

"Oh, Edward! I'm so sorry about that! My brother won't let me go to any boy's house. He's very protective."

"That's good. You can never be too careful. You're lucky to have a brother that cares so much about you."

I nodded. "I know."

We lapsed into silence. I knew he had come here to say something, so I sat still and watched him.

Edward was looking down at his feet. "I don't know quite how to say this, Kiera. I've never had this sort of conversation before. I'm just so sorry. There was no excuse for my behavior that night. I can't imagine how much I hurt you. And then I just left you there, in the middle of the forest."

I suddenly remembered how my thoughts were hidden from him; I shouldn't make him suspect anything. Why don't I try out Dylan's theory? What thought could I make him see?

That night was awful. I trudged around for hours in the woods trying to find my way. I have no idea how I made it home. There, Edward, hear that.

He nodded.

"Yes, I can see how terrible that would be, and I truly am sorry."

I pretended to be surprised. "How did you- oh right! You can read minds. Sorry, I forgot that for a second."

He didn't seem to see through my poor acting. "Well, do you accept my apology? I beg you to, though I would understand if you didn't."

Edward finally looked up and turned the full force of his dark butterscotch eyes on me. I melted.

"Of course, Edward. How could I not forgive you?"

He grinned my favorite crooked smile. I quickly shot another thought at him before my mind completely slipped away.

I need to ask him something. It's important.

"Is there something you would like to ask me?"

I nodded. There was one thing I had been wondering about for the last few days. I worked up my courage.

"I was thinking, Edward. You seemed to really like me." I looked up to see if this was ok.

He nodded. "Yes, Kiera. I consider you a very good friend."

"Alright, well you were spending so much time with me. You took me to the meadow every night and we talked and talked."

"I said I'm sorry for that. I didn't mean to give you the wrong idea."

"No, just listen. Why did I appeal so much to you? As a friend or whatever? You obviously didn't have a problem being close to me."

Edward considered this. "Well, I'm not entirely sure. I think it might be because you reminded me of Bella."

For some reason this made me angry. "Bella? How do I remind you of Bella? For one thing, we look completely different. She has brown eyes and I have purple for goodness sake! And what of our personalities? She's frail and shy and doesn't do anything! I play sports and stay outdoors as much as possible. I love the rain!"

By this time I had stood up. Tears were running down my cheeks and my voice was rising.

"I'm not pretty like her! I don't have a train of boys following me everywhere! In fact, not a single guy has ever asked me out? Did you know that? Not a single one. Bella's got everything. She's got a ton of friends, a car, an exciting life, and she even has you! What have I got? Nothing! How are we alike? How do I remind you of her?"

Edward seemed to be in shock. He didn't seem to know what to say to that. I didn't blame him. After a few moments pause, he stood up as well and put his hands on my shoulders. Through my haze of anger, a little bit of electricity surged through my veins.

"Kiera, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I don't know what you mean. You're beautiful, just in a different way than Bella. I can't understand why at least thirty boys haven't asked you out. But, don't worry, Kiera. I waited a century to meet the perfect girl. The right boy will come along someday.

"As for how you remind me of Bella, I can't really but a finger on it. You're unique, Kiera. Your purple eyes are what show that on the outside. They are sort of a marker. They're a sign indicating that there is something special inside. I know this sounds ridiculous but just bare with me, ok? You've got an amazing personality and it seems like you can do most anything if you put your mind to it. Bella has got that strange complexity too. She doesn't express it in the same way you do, but you both have it, just the same."

"And is that a good thing?"

"Yes, it's a very good thing."

With a chuckle he dropped his hands and moved toward the door.

"What, you're leaving?"

"You need some rest. It's late."

I felt the tears coming again.

"But you just arrived! Don't go! Please!"

"I can come back tomorrow. If that's alright with you?"

"Of course, you're welcome any time."

"Thank you, Kiera. Now goodnight."

"Good bye."

But before the door had closed behind him Dylan was there. He was smiling, the first time I had seen him do so in a while.

He whispered, "Great work!" and then was gone.

-Chocolate13


	18. The Caged Animal

I had finally fallen into an uneasy sleep when my cellphone rang

Disclaimer: All rights to _Twilight_, _New Moon_, and _Eclipse _belong to Stephenie Meyer.

Author's Note: I'm back again! Here's the new chapter. These last few installments have been mainly setting up the climax, as you might have noticed. As we begin to near the end, I ask that you please continue to review. I would really appreciate the feedback. Also, I just wanted to let you know that the character "Riley" has no relation whatsoever to the vampire at the end of Eclipse. I wasn't thinking about him at all when I came up with my character. Thanks so much and here we go!

I had finally fallen into an uneasy sleep when my cellphone rang. Without opening my eyes, I reached over and grabbed it. Flipping it over, I pressed it against my ear.

"Hello?"

Despite everything that had happened, the voice that replied surprised me more than Edward's return and Alice's change of heart put together.

"Hey,"

"Ivy?"

"Honestly, Kiera, who else would call you at two in the morning."

"Yeah, good point."

I was still half asleep, my mind was working very slowly.

"Did I wake you up?"

"Uh-huh."

"Oh, sorry."

"That's ok. What's up?"

"Well, I couldn't sleep."

"And you want me to sing you a lullaby?"

"Ha, your singing would put anyone to sleep."

"Is that supposed to be an insult?"

I wasn't thinking clearly. I couldn't tell if she was serious or just joking.

"Just listen, Kiera. The reason I can't sleep is because I keep thinking about you. I think my conscience has finally caught up to me."

"That took long enough."

I chuckled. Yes, something was definitely wrong with me.

"I just wanted to say I was sorry for everything. I got angry and I let that anger take over. I can't believe I spread those rumors. I can't believe I was so awful towards you. I'll make it all up, I promise. I completely understand if you don't want to be friends anymore. I don't deserve your kindness. But I'd be overjoyed if you want to be friends again. And, I don't care who that boy was, the one that you were sitting with at the diner. You can tell me if you want, but you don't have to. Because friends don't have to tell each other everything. They are there to support each other."

I had no idea what to say to that.

"Wow." I'm a genius.

"Are you ok, Kiera?"

"Yeah, I'm just tired."

"I'll can talk to you at school, if you want."

"No, no, I'm fine. That was a great speech."

"Thanks, I worked really hard on it."

"Please tell me you didn't write it out?"

There was a pause.

"Well, how am I supposed to remember it if it wasn't on paper?" She sighed "Was it that obvious?"

"It was really formal and stuff. But I really don't care if you write it down or not though, so don't worry."

"Oh, Kiera. I'm so sorry. I really am."

I suddenly couldn't remember why I had ever been angry with Ivy. She was my friend, and always would be.

"Don't be sorry, Ivy. I should have told you about that boy. That was one of the biggest mistakes I ever made."

"You're being silly."

"It's the truth."

"So I'm forgiven?"

"There's nothing to be forgiven for."

That was the third life-changing apology I had received within twenty-four hours. That had got to be a record.

"Hey, Ivy?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you know how to get into the Guinnes Book of World Records?"

"Um, I don't know. Write to them, I guess."

"Yeah."

I was trying to remember what record I had set. I was really falling apart. Everything with Edward and Victoria was driving me insane. And this sudden reversal on Ivy's part completely flipped everything upside down. I had no idea what I was doing anymore. I was lying in bed talking to my newly reinstated friend at two in the morning. What about school? Did that really matter anymore? I was going to kill a vampire on Saturday. And oh yes, my brother was a vampire too. I hadn't really processed that yet. I really needed time to think. I really wanted to go to sleep. I then remembered Ivy was still on the line.

"Hello?"

"Kiera?"

"Don't you want to go to sleep? Don't worry about your conscience any more."

"Ok."

But she still didn't hang up. I racked my brain, trying to figure out what more she wanted.

Then it hit me.

"You want to know who that boy was, don't you?"

"Yeah, a little."

"Well, I'm not going to tell you now. It's a long story and I'm tired. I'll tell you at school."

"Ok."

"Goodnight, Ivy."

"Night!"

I flipped my cellphone off and rolled over, hoping that by the end of the day there would be someone else I could talk to about this mess.

"Get out of my way!"

"Will you stop it?"

"Me stop it? You're the one blocking the door."

"I'm not letting you out of this house with him."

"We're supposed to be getting closer."

"You have your bonding time scheduled for after classes. I'm driving you to school."

"He'll be here in a couple of minutes. What am I going to tell him?"

"That your brother will be driving you."

I glared at him. Contacts in, he was standing in the doorway, arms crossed. He was wearing his favorite rolling stones t-shirt and a pair of faded blue jeans. He was acting so much like his former self that it was hard to remember that he was no longer human.

"How many times do I have to tell you that he will never hurt me?"

"You're off balance Kiera."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you are not yourself. All this stress is starting to take its toll."

"Are you saying that I'm crazy?"

"Not crazy, just off balance."

It really bothered me how he was talking so calmly.

"I'm not unbalanced!"

"Yes, you are. When I look into your eyes, I don't see the certainty I used to. You don't seem to know what to do or what to think. I can understand that, and there's really no way around that confusion. But I'm not going to let you put yourself in a situation where you could be harmed by others or, worse, harm yourself."

"That's ridiculous. Let me go!"

"No, Kiera."

There was something about that tone. It was so assertive. No matter what I said, he wasn't going to move. And that got me mad. That got me very mad.

With a wild sort of yell I rammed my fist into the side of his head.

Or at least, I tried. He caught my wrist before I touched him. I wasn't finished yet, though. I twisted around and tried to bite his arm. His skin was as hard as stone, and I sprang back.

"Kiera, stop it."

"No, you stop it!"

I swung my other fist around and he caught that one too. Both my wrists were locked in an iron grip.

"Quit being stupid."

"Shut up! Let me go!"

"Not until you come to your senses."

"I have my senses."

"No you don't."

"How would you even know?"

"Because I'm your brother. You have to listen to me."

"I hate you!"

Oh no. That was a mistake. After all he had done for me, all he had suffered through, that was the wrong thing to say.

He froze for a second. I stared into his eyes.

Something was moving behind his darkened contacts. It was a glow, faint at first, but growing stronger. That glow held power, strength, supremacy. It scared me, but I couldn't seem move away. It was like some huge animal, trapped in a cage. It had been taunted and teased enough to drive it insane. The iron bars, once quite sufficient to hold it in place, no longer made a difference. It was about to break out.

"Dylan," I whimpered.

There was no sign of the contacts anymore. It was as if they had simply melted away. The red glow was so strong now that it didn't seem to be contained within his eyes. His glare was scorching, filled with intense emotion. I struggled to break free, but he held on tighter.

This was it. This was the end. I was all alone with a newborn vampire, crazed for blood, denied it for too long. I suddenly remembered that he had murdered dozens of people in that mine. He was dangerous. Why hadn't I grasped that concept before?

"Dylan,"

He seemed be growing taller, everything about him expanding into power. And his eyes, those red pits of hell, were still blazing into me.

Tears ran down my face. No trace of my brother remained in this monster.

And then, suddenly, he was gone.

I was lying on the floor in a heap, all alone.

"Dylan?"

There was no answer.

I got shakily to my feet. I staggered a bit and leaned against the wall. He was right, I was unbalanced.

"Dylan!"

A car honked from outside. I opened the curtain enough to see a silver Volvo in front of the house.

I quickly wiped off my face and grabbed my backpack. With one more look back at the house, I ran out the door, wondering what on earth would happen now.

-Chocolate13


	19. DaysHoursMinutesNow

Disclaimer: All rights to _Twilight_, _New_ _Moon,_ _Eclipse,_ and _Breaking Dawn_ belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N: Hey everyone! So I'm back. Sorry about the long wait. I've got good news though! The final two chapters will be up within a week. They're all done. Just to remind you, this story was started before _Eclipse _was published, so it is written without any of the information from either _Eclipse_ or _Breaking Dawn_. Happy movie release, by the way! I hope everyone loved it. Enjoy!

I was sitting in the corner of the cafeteria. Ivy was next to me, listening with wide eyes as I told her everything. Absolutely everything. It felt very good. And unlike Lacie, Ivy actually understood. When I finished, she just stared at me.

"Oh, Kiera. I can't believe it!"

"I know. That's the way I'm feeling too."

"So, you're really going to do it? On Saturday?"

"Yeah."

"Wow."

"Yeah."

She continued staring but I looked away, scanning the cafeteria. Dylan wasn't here. I'd been watching for him in the hallway all morning, but he was nowhere to be seen. As my eyes made another round of the room, I spotted Lacie making her way toward me, tray in hand. I saw her freeze for a moment as she noticed my companion.

"Hey, guys." She said as she reached the table.

"Hi, Lacie." I said. Ivy still seemed to be in shock.

Lacie looked from me to Ivy and then back to me again. She raised her eyebrows pointedly.

"It's all good now. We've made up."

"When did this happen?"

"Last night."

"Oh." Something in her face faltered for a second, but then she was smiling. "Finally! It's taken you long enough. How about we all go out tonight, for dinner or something, to celebrate."

"Sorry, Lacie, I'm seeing Edward. And Ivy's coming over to meet him. You can come too, if you want."

There was that little falter again. "Oh, no. It's ok. I got loads of homework anyway. You guys free any other day?"

"Nope, those are our plans every night."

"Ok. That's fine."

The rest of the day passed rather quickly with no excitement.

I gave Ivy a piece of Darkstone, just in case she passed Edward or Alice in the halls today.

Riley had been very happy when he saw my five page write-up, and didn't bother to read it over. I had been afraid he was one of those people who did that. But he just took it from me, stapled it to his half, and then handed it in.

And then I got a History test back, which I failed. And a Spanish quiz, on which I had scraped past with a low D. Nope. I wouldn't tell my parents about those. They seemed completely not part of my life right now anyway.

After school I walked outside with Ivy. It was so great having her back again.

"You know, Kiera, I've been thinking. I'm excited about meeting Edward tonight. I really am. You're doing the right thing on Saturday, but I'm not going to waste my time with him acting all sorry about it. I'm going to enjoy it. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, I guess I feel the same way."

I walked over to where Dylan usually parked, but there was another car there. I was confused for a moment, and then I remembered what had happened this morning. Now how were we going to get home?

The answer was obvious.

"Kiera!"

I turned around and there was Edward walking toward us. Ivy squealed softly and stiffened beside me.

"Edward, this is Ivy, my friend."

"Pleasure to meet you, Ivy."

"Hi." She whispered.

"My brother isn't here and I –"

"Sure, Alice is bringing the car around."

The rest of the week passed so quickly I barely had time to notice anything. Days were spent in close conversations with Ivy, planning out Saturday evening. Nights were spent with Edward. Ivy left to go home after a couple of hours, and I was able to have some time alone with him. We just talked and he helped me with homework, and I tried as hard as possible not to think about what was about to happen.

Dylan hadn't been seen since Tuesday morning. I wasn't worried about how he was physically. I knew he could take care of himself just fine. But I was scared that I had given him an injury that even a vampire couldn't deal with.

When I woke up on Saturday morning, I just lay there for a while. Time had gone way too fast, I wasn't ready for this. Maybe I wouldn't get up. Maybe I'd just stay here in bed and wait for Victoria to come and find me. It wouldn't take long, she'd be here by midnight tonight.

Suddenly the phone rang next to my bed. I reached over and glanced at the number.

"Ivy?"

"Good morning!"

"Speak for yourself."

"Still in bed?"

"Mmm hmmm."

"I knew it. I thought you might need a little prodding. You can't turn back now."

"I think I can."

"Kiera, she'll kill you."

"I know-"

"Kiera, listen. She. Will. Kill. You. It's not a joke, she's not kidding. Don't you understand? Don't you see what this means? You'll be dead. It doesn't matter what you think about death. Whether you go to heaven or hell or just cease to exist. I think the best place in the universe is right here, and I know you do too."

I sighed. "You don't think I'll go to hell whether I lead him to his death or not?"

"Maybe. But you'll get more time here if you do."

I hadn't really given much thought to what would happen after I died. But that didn't really matter right now. It wouldn't change anything.

"Ok, I'll meet you at Edward's house at five."

"You're gonna call him?"

"Yeah, right now."

"Good luck."

"See ya."

I hung up, took a deep breath and dialed Edward's number. He answered before the first ring had ended.

"Morning, Kiera."

"Hi, Edward."

"Happy Saturday."

"Yeah, I know. Listen, I was wondering, do you want to go to the meadow tonight?"

There was silence on the other end. I quickly continued.

"Its just, I was talking to Ivy and I told her about it. And she really wants to see it."

The presence of a third person seemed helped.

"Ok. That's fine. What time should I pick you up?"

"Around five?"

"Sure. Till then."

"Bye."

I stopped myself from flopping down on the bed and walked over to get dressed.

Just like the week, the day passed far more quickly than I would have liked. Before I was quite aware of any passage of time, the clock was telling me I had about two minutes till Edward would arrive.

As I walked toward the front door, I saw my reflection in the hall mirror. I paused and looked closer. It was still me, still Kiera. Still the same person who had seen that silver Volvo only a few short weeks ago.

I would still be the same person tonight, when I got home. I'd be a murderer then, the blood on my hands still wet and warm. Maybe I was a murderer now. I put my hands in my pockets and turned away. My fingers felt the chunk of darkstone, and I clutched it tightly.

When the car horn honked outside, I didn't jump. I calmly glanced in the mirror one last time, straightened my shirt, then walked outside.


	20. The Meadow in the Moonlight

Disclaimer: All rights to Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N: Here's the second to last chapter! The next one will be online very shortly. Have fun!

So, here we were, Saturday night, walking into the forest. I was leading with Edward and Ivy on either side. We had decided not to run, for the sake of enjoying the cool evening. It wasn't completely dark yet, the sky was a dark, inky blue.

It was so strange, I had excepted to be confused and doubtful during this time. I had expected to not really believe that this was happening. But, instead, I just felt, well, normal. I wasn't fooling myself, I knew very well what was about to happen. And I was afraid, yes, just as scared as ever. But, for the first time in several weeks, I was in control of myself.

At first, we talked, but after a while, we grew silent. I couldn't tell if Edward was suspecting anything. He seemed a little tenser than usual, but then again we were in the middle of the woods in the middle of the night He knew that his senses were not very sharp here, and that any number of enemies could be hiding in the brush. However, he didn't expect anyone or anything to be there.

And that was what would make all the difference.

Suddenly, there was a rustling noise, loud enough for Ivy and I to hear.

We all whipped around and Edward crouched down. he let loose a snarl.

"What is it? Edward!" Ivy said, grabbing my arm.

"Vampire." He spit back at us.

I caught Ivy's eye, and I saw my own resolve reflected there. She gave a slight nod, then turned away.

However, the voice that came out of the darkness was quite different then the one I'd expected.

"Calm down, Edward. Won't you let a brother speak to his sister?"

I gasped. "Dylan?"

"Hey, Kiera."

Edward hadn't moved, and it seemed that Dylan hadn't either.

"It's ok Edward." I said, "It's my brother."

"He's a vampire, Kiera."

"I know."

This surprised him. He looked up at me. "When did this happen?"

"About two weeks ago, I think."

With another growl, but more of an exasperated one, he straightened up.

"It would have been a good idea to tell me."

"I know. Sorry."

By this time, Dylan had moved close enough that I could see him. He looked very normal, with clean clothes and his dark hair brushed. Even his expression was very normal, calm and collected. I wondered if I was looking the same way. The only thing vampirish about him was his red eyes.

They glowed, the only bright color in the darkness.

"Don't blame her, Edward. I told her not to tell you."

"But how-"

"That darkstone stuff really works, doesn't it?"

"Ah, I see. That explains everything. Except…who changed you?"

There was a deep silence.

Then Dylan shrugged. "I don't know."

Something lit up in Edward's eyes, like a light bulb. He stared intently at Dylan, then turned to Ivy and I, still with the same expression. I guess he'd figured out that we were all covered in darkstone. But then I could see it, the suspicion creeping into his face. Dylan noticed it too.

"Mind if I join your little stroll?"

"Not at all." Said Edward quietly. We all turned and continued walking.

About half an hour later, we reached the meadow. It was empty.

The moon was covered by some clouds, but was still bright enough to cast a faint light on the open space. The clouds were moving, and made patterns on the grass. The tension between the four of us was so tight I could feel the pull. I had to say something.

"Well, Ivy. This is the meadow."

"Oh." She didn't know quite what to say either. "It's very…pretty."

Silence. Then, quite clearly, we all heard footsteps coming toward us. Edward and Dylan both stiffened, but neither got down into a distinctively defensive position. I think they both had a pretty good idea of what was

about to happen.

Victoria stepped out of the trees. She looked like a vampire, with dirty, bloody clothes, and matted, wild hair. The wind came from behind her, and blew the red strands forward, intensifying her image.

There was a muffled thump beside me. I quickly looked down. Ivy had fainted.

Victoria broke into a huge smile.

"Edward. What a pleasure it is to see you again."

"Victoria." He inclined his head slightly in greeting.

"Where's your beloved Bella?"

"She's not here. She's safe."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes." He still remained motionless, but she continued to come towards us.

"How about this girl?" She pointed at me, a long white finger ending in a clawed nail. "What a kid, huh?"

Edward didn't respond.

"She did exactly what I told her to. So human. She's much more fun than Bella."

She waited for him to say something, but then continued.

"Edward, she brought you here tonight so I could kill you. She did it in full knowledge of the consequences of her actions. She chose her life over yours."

My stomach dropped. Finally, here was the feeling I'd been missing all night. It was shock, and terror, and confusion. I expected him to look around and face me, demand to know if this was true, let me see the pain in his eyes. But he didn't. He kept forward, facing her.

"Do you not care, Edward?"

"Whether I care or not is clearly not the issue here."

Victoria now turned her gaze to the third vampire in the meadow.

"Dylan. You look fine. What a handsome little vampire."

"Leave me out of this, Victoria. It's between you and Edward."

"But you're here, aren't you?"

"Yes. Yes, I am."

Finally, she stopped moving. Once again, it was silent in the meadow. This time, however, it wasn't strained. It was expectant.

And then she attacked.

They were off. We watched as a magnificent battle unfolded right there in front of us. It was almost beautiful, with all the movements exactly right. It was like it was a staged fight, each detail carefully planned out.

Edward and Victoria were like dance partners, not enemies, spinning and twirling. They worked together to create this, and seemed to have the same intent.

And this intent was what broke the image of beauty. For this was not entertainment, but a very real fight. The type that was in Twilight. That exact type. One of them wouldn't survive. I moved close to Dylan and pressed against his side. He didn't seem to notice, his eyes fixed on the other two vampires.

I noticed that, despite the apparent twirling, Edward never moved so that Victoria had a clear shot at us. He was always facing her, his back towards Dylan, Ivy and I. He was trying to protect us. Though it would have been much easier for him if he could've changed position, he chose the harder way in order to protect the person who had tried to kill him.

Oh, Edward.

How could I have been so stupid? He deserved to live. I didn't.

Before I could even take a step forward, I felt a cool hand on my wrist, restraining me. I looked up, Dylan was still facing forward and made no acknowledgement of me. But his grip remained tight.

The fight continued, getting so fast that I couldn't see clearly who was who. I wanted to go to them so badly. I was shaking, needing to move, but Dylan didn't let go.

Edward, Edward, Edward. There was only one word occupying my thoughts. And before I knew it, I was sobbing. And then I did possibly one of the dumbest things yet.

I didn't mean to, it was all just so much. Because I was thinking his name so hard and I was crying, it didn't even require a thought to put them both together.

"Edward!" I shrieked.

Suddenly the whirling colors in front of me stopped, and Edward was facing me. Before I could even recognize this, I felt an excruciating pain in my stomach and I had fallen backwards onto the ground.

Everything was happening so quickly I wasn't fully conscious of anything. At first I felt pain everywhere, and a heaving weight on top of me. And then that weight was gone, and I heard snarls and then different snarls. Then I felt a pair of hands on my stomach, gentle, smooth, comforting hands.

"Hold still, Kiera. Hold still."

"D-Dylan?"

"Shhhh, its ok."

Pain was shooting through my whole body and I squirmed under the hands.

"Kiera, please.

I tried as hard as possible not to move, holding my breath. Then, the pain

disappeared.

"Ok, you're good now."

I sat up slowly, waiting for something to start hurting again. But I really felt fine, perfect even. Dylan was sitting next to me, his eyes wide and anxious. In front of me, Edward and Victoria had resumed their fight.

"What happened?"

"Victoria attacked you, and I pulled her off. She rammed into your stomach, and scratched you all over. It really is a good thing I was right here. You were pretty banged up."

I stared at him, my mouth falling open. I had forgotten about his healing abilities. I didn't know what to say.

"You're welcome."

"Oh, sorry! Thanks."

He helped me to my feet.

"I thought she just wanted to hurt Edward. I didn't think-"

"That's why I'm here, Kiera."

The fight continued for quite some time. No one seemed to be getting the upper hand. After a while, they suddenly broke apart, each moving backwards.

"Something wrong, Edward?" Victoria asked.

"This isn't going anywhere. We should settle this another way." He said calmly and in full breath, as if he hadn't just spent an hour in constant movement.

"What other way is there?" She laughed.

For the third time that night, there was a sound from the trees surrounding the meadow. Everyone turned toward it. I had absolutely no idea who it could be. Everyone who had had anything to do with this whole thing was already here.

Victoria laughed again.

"Oh, someone else has come to join in our little game. Come on out and play, darling!"

There was some more rustling and then someone stepped out. It was so dark I couldn't see at first. But then the all too familiar features came into full view.

I gasped.

"Lacie, get out of here! What are you doing?"

She turned toward me, a blank expression on her face.

"Here you are, Kiera. I was trying to find you. You hadn't come home and your parents were very worried. I knew you were in the woods somewhere so I came to look there. And then I heard some noises, so I followed them. Its very late, you should get home."

I didn't get it. She was speaking in a monotone, as if she had been hypnotized. She turned slowly, taking in the full seen. She stopped when she saw Edward.

"Oh, its you. I thought it might have been you who kidnapped my friends and is keeping them in the middle of the forest. Why not? You already stole them from me days ago. You ruined Kiera's life. Because of you, she was separated from her brother, from Ivy, from her parents and all other humans. Only I was still left to give some form of comfort. But then, once she has Ivy back, I've been thrown out as well."

I stared at her, in complete shock. She turned back to me.

"I don't blame you, Kiera. After all, you're only human. No, its not you."

And then, almost as fast as if she were a vampire herself, she was running at Edward. And as she ran, she put her hand in her pocket and took out a knife.

I screamed and started to run forward but she was too close.

Lacie threw her whole weight into the thrust and ran the knife into Edward's chest.

But Lacie had never read the books, she didn't know that this would never have worked. She bounced backward, and fell, scraping her hand on the knife. Blood poured out onto the grass. And then Victoria was on her, and all I could hear were piercing screams. And then, within a second, all was silent again.

Completely silent.

Edward hadn't moved an inch since Lacie had first entered the clearing. Victoria, feet away from him, was on the ground bending over Lacie. Next to me, Dylan was watching Victoria with a look of utmost disgust. I didn't know what to think or feel. I just didn't know. Nothing.

After about a minute, Victoria stood up, wiping blood from her lips. Her smile was radiant.

"Who was that?" She asked, but no one answered. "How many enemies do you have, Edward? Quite funny, actually. Did you see the way she ran into you? Ha, just fell right over. Well, shall we?"

And with that, she pounced on Edward again and they were off.

Lacie's body was lying in the middle of the meadow. It was pale, completely drained of all color. The clouds were still moving across the moon, and the shadows danced across her face. But it didn't make it look alive, just more dead.

The hours went by. The fight continued.

After a long silence, Dylan murmured something.

"This is useless. Something needs to happen."

I looked up at him. Suddenly, something changed. A look of extreme determination was spreading, brilliant, over his face.

I grabbed his arm.

"No, Dylan."

He looking down at me.

"Yes, Kiera."

This couldn't be happening. No. It couldn't.

"Dylan-"

"Listen, Kiera. You've got a life ahead of you. Me, I've got nothing. Do you think I want to live like this forever? If I don't do anything, you'll be dead by morning. Victoria will get bored and go after you again. I can stop that. I don't want to live, ok? Dying for you would be the one thing I could feel good about. I'd feel like a hero, not a monster. This is what's best, I can feel it."

His red eyes, blazing with passion, suddenly became very tender. I could see my Dylan in them. My stupid, annoying big brother telling me once again that he was right and I was wrong. For the last time.

"Kiera, I want you to do something for me, ok?"

The tears started to come, and I nodded violently.

"Make the most out of your life. Date guys, go to movies, have fun. You can be human. Don't you realize how amazing that is? Be human, ok? I need you to."

I nodded again, the tears streaming.

He stepped forward and wrapped me in a huge. I pressed my face up against his shirt and held him tight.

"I love you, Kiera. So much."

And then he was gently pushing me away. He was walking forward toward the other two. And I couldn't do anything to stop him.

The last of the clouds moved past the moon, and its bright light filled the clearing. The pale skin of the three vampires glowed brightly.

Dylan paused for a second then jumped into the mass of swirling colors and shapes. At once, the twirling stopped. Edward and Dylan were both on Victoria, and there was a horrible sound of scratching and tearing.

Suddenly, Edward was thrown to the side and Victoria descended on Dylan. I closed my eyes tight, but I still heard the ear splitting ripping sounds. Then, there were snarls and more ripping sounds began, but of a different tone.

I guess he couldn't heal himself, after all.

Plugging my ears, I dropped down onto the ground, sobbing.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. Hesitantly, I took away my hands and opened my eyes. Ahead of me was a small fire, the first flames beginning to lick their way up huge chunks of a pale substance. There was no sign of Dylan, Victoria, or Lacie.

Neither Edward or I said anything. There was nothing to say.


	21. Epilogue

Disclaimer: All rights to Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn

belong to Stephenie Meyer.

A/N: So here we are. The final chapter. Thank you all so much for supporting me and reading my story. Also, thanks to all of you who reviewed and for all your feedback. You have no idea how much I appreciate everything. Thank you thank you thank you! Here we go…

At first, I thought it was going to be hard to just go back into my normal life. But it wasn't. It was very natural.

Of course, there were a lot of differences. For one thing, Lacie wasn't at school anymore. I missed her smile and her constant comfort every day, every minute.

And then there was the absence of my favorite chauffer. I missed him so much

I sometimes couldn't think with the pain of it. But deep down, I knew that this was better for him. Wherever he was now, he was probably much happier than he had been here.

My parents had also gotten a whole lot more protective. The town was under the impression that Lacie and Dylan both died in an avalanche of rock in the mountains. It was Edward's idea. The story dealt with the fact that we didn't have any bodies. It also gave us an excuse for not remembering many of the details.

I wasn't allowed to go walking in the woods anymore. And I certainly wasn't allowed out at night anymore. I didn't really mind though. Maybe I did need to learn a little more responsibility.

Edward and Alice left shortly after the incident in the meadow. They had come to say goodbye, and I given both of them a hug. Neither of us said we'd stay in touch.

There might have been a time when I'd have been sad to see them go. I might have been very disappointed that I'd never gotten to meet the rest of his family. I might have cried to think that Edward was never going to leave Bella's side. To think that I'd wasted my chance to win him over.

But that time was over.

I actually felt a little happy as I watched the silver Volvo turn off our street.

My grades were getting back to where they used to be, partly with the help of Riley. He and I very quickly became close friends. Slowly, I realized that perhaps, I would have more than one opportunity for romance in my life.

After a while, my time with the vampires took on a dream-like quality. So much so that I wasn't really sure if it had all been real.

My life went on, and I did just what Dylan told me to do. I was human. I lived. And that was reality.

The End.

-Chocolate13


End file.
